


Beginnings

by LilahLuck



Series: The Reapers Trilogy [1]
Category: Avenged Sevenfold
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2018-01-11
Packaged: 2019-02-11 13:09:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 37,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12935961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilahLuck/pseuds/LilahLuck
Summary: Witches, Demons, Hot Guys and a whole lot of trouble....death is a veil, what's beyond closer than anyone thinks





	1. The End

London, August 1888.

“Is this really necessary ?”  
“You want him back don’t you ?”  
“Of course I want him back, as much as you do and maybe more.”  
The rustle of her black silk dress was all that told him that she had moved from behind him and Zacky managed to pull his gaze away from his best friend’s still face and back up to hers for a mere moment before he looked back down. He would have trusted Lilith with his life but did he trust her with Brian’s ?  
The room seemed to close in around him, there was no natural light in the cellar and no gaslight unlike the rooms upstairs. Here there were only candles to light the blackness and they cast shadows onto the still form of the young man on the table. Zack continued to gaze at the sober dark suit and knotted tie, incongruous against the discoloured bruises that marred a handsome face. They had laid him out as if his next journey was to the grave, only the charms and ancient symbols of salt and blood marked it out as an alter. The flickering shadows made it seem like Brian was smiling at them occasionally and it added to the cold feeling of unease, Zack’s doubts were even now private from everyone except Claire.  
“Then we have to do this. The only way I can summon him back from the beyond is with that spell.”  
Her companion closed his eyes and listened to the rustle of silk again. Lilith was a beautiful woman, dark haired and pale with the most watchful eyes, she exuded power despite being short and lithe. She always reminded Zacky of a cat, sleek and deadly. They had come to know each other through their mutual lovers. His Claire was her adopted sister and both women were powerful witches, maybe the most powerful alive. That he even believed in witches was a testament to their talents, a chance meeting with the women while he and Brian had been on a case had proved to be a turning point for them all.  
Zacky had known Brian since childhood, a mass of memories crowding into his mind as his fingers brushed down a cold cheek. He was too still, the man that Brian had become was never still and now it was painful to look at, painful to think of him never moving again. The tow headed kid had grown into a man with sharp cheekbones and a sweet smile that had brought him women and Zacky’s love up to and beyond the point that Lilith had stolen his heart and Claire had walked into his own. There had never been any jealousy between them, the four had become lovers and confidents until three days before when a stupid decision had led them to this point.  
“Innocent blood ?”  
“He was innocent.”  
A wry smile crossed her full lips which caused Zacky to look up and grin. Brian had never been an innocent, always the first to try out the worst of sins and revel in them, often dragging him along for the ride. His hand now lingered across the still chest. He knew the terrible wounds were still beneath, he had watched Lilith at her lowest moment, sobbing as she had cleaned the dried blood from the rips in his skin and couldn’t quite believe that he had convinced the others to at least let them try this before giving up his friend to the grave forever. Her begging had been relentless, the pain in her voice still haunted Zacky and had persuaded him as much as his need to hold his friend again and feel that hug returned. The others were sceptical, Matt especially, but they had allowed Claire and Lilith to work all night on a lost spell that would stop the decay from spoiling his body until they had been given the chance to attempt the resurrection.  
That at least had worked. The dark waves of his hair fell just above the purple bruising around Brian’s closed eyes, he had not gone into rigor mortis nor had the bruises mottled or spread. He was simply frozen in this moment of his death and was now waiting for them to break all the rules of earth and air to return the breath to his body. Lilith lifted his hand, the wedding band there was not legal but to her the hand-fasting had meant more and Brian had always desired to please her in all things. They were married in soul, the law meant nothing to either of them. Zacky watched her and sighed. A widow at twenty four was not what he had wanted for her any more than he had wanted Brian to leave them. Both men were gentleman above all things and now the urge to protect her overrode his own moral misgivings at what they were discussing.  
“Maybe not innocent but he didn’t deserve what happened to him Zack, nobody deserves to die like that. He was trying to do good and it took him from us.”  
Lilith could feel the anger welling up and fought to keep the tears from her eyes. She would damn every last one of them to hell for eternity if it meant she got him back and she wondered if Zacky realised it. Claire certainly did and had tried to talk her into something less entrenched in black magic but Johnny had not been able to find a scientific solution that would work. She knew they both worked at it still in the laboratory at the other end of the house, Claire coming here only on the stroke of midnight each evening to help her redo the spell again. The sisters were united at that moment as they had been since childhood, their lives as intertwined as it was possible to be.  
“Then I have no choice.”  
Zacky straitened his tie, a nervous habit that his friends knew did not bode well. He was an enigma even to them, fun loving and sweet natured but with the ability to turn it off like a switch and kill without his expression ever changing. He was a little shorter than Brian and handsome in a different way that shone in his own charisma. People had underestimated him since the beginning and he remembered Brian telling countless people to back off, to be careful before smiling that devil may care smile and watching the destruction as they were taken down. They had been the most formidable team and it had helped them when Matt had laid out his plans for the five friends to leave behind the confines of class and expectations to become their own men. Zacky had always been grateful to his friend for making that leap possible and for giving them all the opportunity to make their mark on a world that seemed intent on self destruction.  
Lilith smoothed down her black skirt, both women observing full mourning for the beautiful man lying so still and cold, it was gorgeous against the alabaster of her skin although he felt that red always worked better on her, the memory of scarlet ribbons woven into her plaited black hair that reached almost to her waist. Lilith had a temper like few women he had known and yet could turn on an innocence that lured men in. He had never worked out whether it was the witchcraft working or just the woman but he considered now just what was leading him to commit what was an act beyond anything he had considered himself capable of before. She looked frail and so young, an act that had seen many of the people she met see only weakness, a fatal error that Lilith used to her advantage.  
Zacky knew that she was watching as he turned and walked to the second table at Brian’s feet. It too held vials and runes, a small leather book open at the centre and before it all a locked metal box. For the last time he hesitated before using one finger to open the catch and lift the lid. The interior was black velvet, his touch gliding against it as he picked up the knife in his left hand. It was ornate and ancient, carved back in a time of fire and steel. Lilith watched him, her eyes lost in shadows from the candles against her skin, she could feel it hum, looking to eviscerate bone and blood, the blade had its own needs and requirements. It would help them now but there would be a price to be collected later and she felt a stab of guilt for what she was asking this amazing man to do.  
He stared into the steel, feeling its power for himself, the hilt seemed to fit every contour of his hand as if the metal was melding itself to the shape of his palm. It was like dipping his hand into fire and yet he liked it and Zacky lifted it now and inspected it against the candle light. It would do what he needed and more, a voice in his head almost echoing his own thoughts of vengeance. Lilith crossed to him, her fingers stroking down his face as she watched the emotions cross his vision and the light flash in his green eyes.  
She would have done this herself if needed but he was stronger, faster and more likely to escape unnoticed in the back alleys of the slums of London. Lilith was all too aware that she was too richly dressed and too well fed to blend in amongst the whores and working class women despite having roots in that part of town originally. She was now a respectable lady, the façade that she and her sister had cultivated even before they had met the men they shared everything with had hidden both humble beginning and what they truly were. The witch had bitter experience of what happened when she showed what she could do.  
“I will be back before midnight. Will you be ready ?”  
Lilith nodded, her gaze drawn back down to Brian as Zacky pulled her to him, his hands around her waist and lips against her neck. Lilith took a breath at the feeling, either of her lovers could be insistent when they wanted a taste of her and she leant into the warmth of his body to enjoy the contact. There had always been an interesting dimension to his relationships with his lover, his best friend and the woman he now held. She was his as Brian had been his, Zacky aware that they had considered him to be theirs and Claire too. Not what most would be comfortable with and yet it had been inevitable and now he wondered if bringing Brian back would seal the four of them together for eternity. Zacky kissed his way to her lips, his eyes holding hers as Lilith looked up with both love and a real fear that they would fail.  
“We will. Claire and I will do the holding spell to give us time and then we can attempt to bring him home.”  
“This has to work. I won’t kill for you again.”  
She pulled away at the chill in his voice, continuing to hold his gaze with a look of animal desperation on her face. Zacky remained calm, he knew she could hurt him badly if she wished although Claire would no doubt pay it back in kind. The two witches had been known to play horrible tricks on each other and anyone else that crossed them and had tempers that could turn nasty if either were provoked. They hid this from the public but all the men treated them with a gentle respect after being on the receiving end more than once. He seemed to remember Brian had been less than impressed with having a tail for a fortnight when he had disliked Claire’s hat, the memory both amusing and paining him as most did now. Zacky knew Lilith would be the first to want another try if the spell went wrong and he also knew that he would not bring himself to repeat this even if he lost Brian forever.  
“It will work. It has to. I won’t lose him like we lost…”  
“No, don’t say that name to me.”  
Lilith flinched and looked back to her lost love as Zacky tucked the knife into the inside pocket of his coat. He usually wore black or pale grey, his natural good looks always highlighted by exquisite taste in suits and accessories. Matt and Brian sometimes teased him for it but envied the innate sense of style that hid a very dangerous man. He could blend in at a society function or a back room brawl and still walk away without a spot of blood on his lapel. He kissed her cheek before departing towards the door, his last look one of mixed hope and concern.  
“If not then we have to let him go Lilith.”  
“I know.”  
She watched him leave, the candles flickering again at the draught and she knew he would be going to find Claire before departing out into the streets. She knew he would not fail her, the list of ingredients had been hard enough without the human element he was now to collect. They had trawled the back alleys, to places and people neither of the women would normally have dealt with and Lilith wondered if even now the rumours would be out there that someone was meddling with things that no sane person would attempt. The light dimmed as Lilith felt her jaw clench, let any of them try and stop her, there were few in the hidden world of magic that would try to match the sister witches despite the implications to the world of spirit. All throughout her training this path had been forbidden, had always carried the direst of warnings.  
Lilith no longer cared for any of that.  
She went back to Brian, lifting his hand and trying to ignore how cold he was. This was insane, she knew it and had weathered many arguments with her friends about what exactly they would achieve if this worked. Would it be their wise cracking, warm hearted and quick witted Brian or some demon wearing his face ? Would it be the man she loved, the man she could not live without or some rotting thing that had walked in the depths of the underworld ?  
“I don’t care as long as you come back.”  
He didn’t move, the stillness bothering her again as she ran her other hand down his chest and resisted the urge to give in to the tears rather than the anger. Lilith closed her eyes, none of the others knew what she had done to the man that had killed him. Matt and Zacky were still looking, searching for clues to the whereabouts of someone already dead. She had made sure he had suffered, burned slowly from the insides out for every minute of torture he had inflicted. Zacky might think he was the only one that had crossed a line but Lilith had already done so much worse, her own sanity had cracked, something that had happened only once before in her life and that even she had not wished to repeat.  
The man had been a murderer several times over before Brian’s blasé attitude to his own safety had led him to go hunting on his own and lightly armed. Matt had been planning on going after the quarry, the reward was significant but he had wanted to do it with the whole team. Lilith again thought of their missing friend and folded Brian’s hands back over his chest, her fury rising.  
Jimmy had been the fifth man, the friendly giant of the team and the most playful. He had been missing for three years and Lilith knew that he was dead, that Brian had been stupid enough to make the same stupid mistake added insult to this grievous injury. It had been something he had done so many times before of course, without incident but this time it had led to days of pain and humiliation. They had searched for nearly a week, terrified and frantic but still hopeful before Johnny had managed to find the lead that had brought Matt and his gang down to a warehouse and the end of all of Lilith’s hopes.  
This murderer had outsmarted Brian, trapping him and torturing him for all that time just purely for the sick thrill that it had brought him. Lilith had closed her mind to all the details, she hadn’t wanted to consider the implications of each burn mark, stab wound and bruise, his pain had been too long lasting, too horrific and yet Brian had lasted all that time. The wretch had managed to slip out of a back window, the group of his friends had been too stunned to find their brother bleeding out and broken, his breath failing him as he finally died in Zacky’s arms before Lilith could reach him. Lilith hugged both arms around herself, the terrible rattling breaths that suddenly stopped as she screamed and screamed in Matt’s grip had haunted her dreams ever since. It had been easy enough for her to hunt the man down, something in her not willing to share the kill. They would have been merciful, even talking of alerting the authorities and Lilith had no room left for mercy.  
He had wept. Lilith remembered that and felt the bile rise as she walked around to her Book Of Shadows. To see that creature weep and beg for a mercy that he had denied Brian had been an insult and she had burned it out of him, the flames devouring him slowly as she had stood and watched. Something inside Lilith had died with her lover and although Claire suspected, had even questioned her about it, she would never tell.  
She wondered if Brian would work it out when he got back and a smile crossed her face. Of course he would, Brian was smart, far more than many realised and he knew his woman inside and out. He would know exactly just what she was capable of.  
Lilith placed new candles into the holders and refreshed the area, her eyes never really leaving the dead man as she worked. The spell book turned its own pages as her lips moved and she added more and more layers into the magic to keep him with her. It was complicated and draining, she had barely slept or eaten despite her friends insistence and she knew that they were worried that she was killing herself to keep up some hope. There had been so many arguments, too many tears and she wondered if the strength would leave her completely if this failed. Again the flickering candles made it seem like the still man smiled and Lilith smiled too, he would come back to her if he could just find his way through the veil.  
There was a sound from outside, light footsteps coming down the eight steps before the door opened and Claire appeared at her side. They were closer than blood sisters, sharing everything including men and secrets. That was the only reason she would go along with this now, knowing that Lilith would do it anyway and hoping not to destroy the border between living and dead in the process. Claire was paler than usual, the contrast against the black mourning gown even more obvious. She was a head taller than Lilith but slender like her sister, her green eyes contrasting with the long red hair that hung down in curls around her face. A classical beauty who had been admired by men since the time the girls had turned thirteen but had only loved one man in her entire life.  
“Zacky told me you were still here.”  
“I won’t leave till he is back with me.”  
“Matt went out, he can’t deal with it and I think the thought of Brian coming back is even harder for him than us.”  
Lilith nodded. Calm and logical Matt struggled with them being able to work magic as it was, he found more comfort in the weapons and gadgets that he and Johnny knocked up rather than any mystical force. She loved their leader, he had been her loyal friend and had kept them all together after both Jimmy and now Brian had left them in the most violent of circumstances. He had been violently opposed to this, voicing all their concerns and some of his own despite hoping beyond everything that it could and would work. Johnny kept his own council, his tacit agreement only voiced by his daily visit to this room.  
“It won’t matter when it works.”  
“If it doesn’t ?”  
Lilith smiled sadly, clasping her friends hand and touching Brian’s hair with the other before leaning into Claire’s shoulder. The other woman could feel the exhaustion coming off Lilith and did silently prayed that whatever happened her sister would find peace. Claire had always been more careful of messing with the borders between the realms and again considered if what they were doing would be what Brian wanted. Lilith wouldn’t consider that possibility until all avenues had been exhausted. Until then the afterlife would not claim him irrevocably.  
“You sound like Zacky.”  
“You have to face it.”  
The two women stood silent, keeping watch over the silent corpse before them and wondering if another soul in the city had already been released. A soul to pay for his, blood to bring him across the divide and the blackest of magic to steal Brian back from the beyond. The air was already thick and heavy in the room and yet the chill over both women would not shift. Claire was concerned for her husband, the bond between them was as with Lilith and Brian. Not legal maybe but spiritual to a degree that few others would find. She remembered it now as she gazed down at the beautiful boy, a ball at Buckingham Palace had brought them all together and now his best friend would go into the worst of the London slums to keep it that way. Claire sent wave after wave of protection out over the house and Zacky before pulling her sister properly into her arms.  
“You should sleep. He won’t be back for hours and Johnny is worried.”  
Lilith smiled, Johnny was like her adopted annoying brother but she adored him and his genius. His concern for her hadn’t stopped since they had found Brian and he had been the one that had forced her to eat and sleep to the point of locking her in her room at times. She felt his energy somewhere in the house above and nodded slowly.  
“Just until he comes back.”  
Claire hugged her lightly, turning Lilith away from Brian and leading her towards the steps. The candles sunk lower at her command as if wishing the silent corpse to sleep too until it was time to restore his life. Lilith let the need for rest overwhelm her and they slowly climbed the steps back up to the pristine black and white tiled hallway. The reassuring ticking of the grandfather clock brought both of them back to a semblance of normality away from the magic below and now Lilith could see that Johnny was by the fire in his study, a book in one hand as he studied the flames.  
The young man was short but smart, any deficit in height made up for by a brilliant mind and a stubborn attitude that belied the boyish charm exemplified by his loosened tie and rolled up sleeves. His hair was brushed back from brilliant grey eyes that held the sparkle of the flames as he concentrated. A small table to his left held a stack of more books and the long table under his window held the latest weapons he was working on. Not that Johnny was all work and no play, he could drink any of them under the table and was only susceptible to the combination of Zacky and Brian talking him into one harebrained scheme after another. He loved women and beer, as long as you could keep him from one or the other long enough to work all would be well. Both Lilith and Claire tried to take care of him, there was still an innocence to Johnny that both wanted to preserve and he loved them deeply, the only one of the men to never be on the receiving end of the witches’ anger.  
“Are you going to bed ?”  
Lilith noticed he hadn’t looked up but the girls paused at his door, a sweet smile on her face as she entered the room and sat in the chair opposite him. Claire swept up to Johnny, kissing his forehead before stroking her sister’s hair and leaving them to talk. She wanted to go upstairs and consult the books again in an attempt to keep her mind away from worrying about Zacky. Johnny waited until the door had closed before putting the book down on the table and looking at Lilith square in the face.  
“Well ?”  
“Yes Johnny, I’m going to bed. At least until Zacky comes home.”  
He didn’t break the stare, his logical mind still struggled with what she was about to do but no doubt in his mind that she would pull it off. All he had to do was be ready with an alternative solution if it didn’t work and so far, he didn’t have one. That bothered him, Johnny was rarely beaten by anything and hadn’t been since he was a young child. His father had been a clergyman, distraught at his son’s rejection of God to follow a career in science. Johnny wondered what he would have made of the witches before looking at his friend’s pale face. Lilith always looked frail but now he was worried that if she failed she would follow Brian to the grave.  
“You need to eat too. I know you haven’t so don’t lie to me.”  
An easy smile crossed his face that was impossible to ignore and Lilith slipped from the chair to kneel beside him, her head resting in his lap. She wondered why Johnny had never found a girl to share his life, whatever conquests he had among the women in the town were short lived and she remembered Brian teasing him many times over it. The man was so easy to love and Lilith badly wanted him to be happy. He stroked her hair, his love for her meant that he could ignore the moral implications of this act, this violation of the laws of god and man.  
“Yes father, anything else ?”  
“Don’t kill us all in an attempt to bring Brian back ?”


	2. Resurrection

The house itself was Georgian, nothing spectacular but set opposite Hyde Park and with enough garden around it that the occasional explosion from one of Johnny’s prototype weapons did not bother the neighbours. It was a large place, a decent cellar that most would use for wine was the laboratory, the attics and sky garden belonged to the witches and the rooms in between were studies, kitchen, living areas and the bedrooms.  
Officially the men ran a weapons business and detective agency from this address although it was the money that Matt had as a Baronet’s son that kept them going along with the bounties they collected. It was a dangerous business and all of them enjoyed the thrill that came along with it. It had also brought them to Lilith and Claire on first a professional and then a personal basis. A love spell cast for the stupid and foppish member of the minor aristocracy had led to a very public duel on one of the airships that piloted across the south coast. When called in to sort out the mess they had run into an amused Lilith and a slightly annoyed Claire.   
It had turned out for the better of course, the stupid boy had required an exorcism and a spell in the mental ward, Brian had found the best fuck of his life involved the privy at Buckingham Palace and Matt and Johnny had been able to finance an entire new set of steam powered experiments. The slow burn had been between Claire and Zacky, a lingering flirtation that had finally sealed a partnership that worked for them all. Matt had remarked that joining science and the ancient arts under one roof was all the more dangerous and he pondered that now as he waited in the garden for Zack to come home.  
It was ridiculous of course.   
You could not bring someone back from the dead.  
Dead was dead, you were put in the ground and you rotted away.  
Brian’s smirk crossed his memory as he ground out the cigar under one heel. Yet here he was, anxiously hoping that whatever voodoo magic the girls were going to use would work. He hadn’t asked Zacky the details of this last piece of the puzzle, Matt really did not want to know. Part of him wondered if he would have done the same, committed any atrocity Lilith would ask just for this one chance of making things right. Johnny had no doubts and had told him so, not believing Matt for a second when he said he would hesitate.  
“You would have taken that knife and gone.”  
“Maybe.”  
“Face it Matt, she won’t rest until she’s tried this.”  
Matt knew it only too well. He was not afraid of Lilith or her anger, Matt could pick her up easily and was mostly immune to whatever magic she threw at him in a fit of rage. At well over six foot he had the physique of a boxer rather than an aristocrat. His family continued to hope he would marry well, his strength and classic good looks had attracted much attention but so far, no permanent match. That he preferred to associate with lower class men and flighty women as his mother put it, was a disappointment. Matt thought that it best that they knew as little about Claire and Lilith as possible, Lilith in particular. They had a mutual respect, too fond of each other to truly hurt but capable of knocking each other down when it was a matter of necessity. Matt was calm, the negotiator and businessman but able to remove a man’s head if provoked into a fight. The others looked to him for a sober mind and usually found it but now he felt like a twelve year old boy at his first fight.  
“You don’t have to stay out here all night.”  
Matt smiled, Zacky had a nasty habit of sneaking up on him, silent as a cat and currently holding a bag in his right hand. His clothes were dark, making him fade into the shadows and Matt could see no sign of blood or a hair out of place. His level of concern dropped a notch and he nodded at the bag.  
“You got it ?”  
“Yes. One of those on our list which helps cancel out having to do that in the first place.”  
Matt nodded, hearing the slightest quaver in Zacky’s voice that told him that his friend had found this hard. The man himself was trying to ignore the pleasure that had come along with the act, unsure as to how much the mystical blade had got into his head. He could feel the thing tight against his rib and hip, still slick with blood and he felt sick, he wanted rid of it. Put the damn thing back into its box and lock it away again. He wanted Claire in his arms and to feel clean again.  
“I can’t watch that. I can’t believe we’re agreeing to this at all. Would Brian want this ?”  
“He didn’t want to die.”  
“I know but…”  
Matt sounded exasperated, neither of them wanting a repeat of the argument. There was a moment of silence between the two men before Zacky reached out and hugged his friend. Matt returned it fiercely before attempting a smile and turning back to look out across the garden towards the dim outline of the city opposite.  
“Just don’t summon a demon again ok ?”  
Zacky chuckled, it had taken Claire three weeks to rid the house of a particularly noisy imp that Lilith had accidently summoned during a game of strip poker involving Brian and Johnny. None of the men had liked to ask just what kind of poker game that had been. He left Matt in the garden and squinted at the gaslit corridor that opened up from the back door.   
They had used one of the closed off cellars as Brian’s temporary home and now he could see the girls and Johnny waiting for him. The room was dark, Brian laying as he had before but now the shirt was open and the terrible gashes were visible across his chest, the flesh ripped and still weeping a little blood. Zacky flinched and handed the bag to Lilith, taking his place with Johnny at the foot of the table. Lilith and Claire stood either side, Claire lighting all the tapers in the room with a flick of her fingers before helping to lay out the charms and salt around the body.  
The final part was the still dripping human heart that Lilith lifted from the bag Zacky had brought home. She laid it across her lover’s body, the blood bright and sparkling against his pale skin. She also took back the blade and laid it carefully nearby. The temperature in the room as was already growing cold as the two women joined hands above Brian and began the incantations. Neither of the men could understand the words, Latin and possibly other languages stretching back further through time.  
It was freezing now, all of them able to see their breath in the frigid air. The only heat came from the table, the heart now disappearing in steam and Johnny was sure he could hear voices and humming in the air, he was unnerved and pleased to see that even the normally unflappable Zacky was swallowing hard and trying to see what exactly was going on. There were skulls in that smoke, he was sure of it even as Claire lowered her hands over Brian’s face, covering his eyes as Lilith lifted the blade high into the air.  
Both women seemed completely undisturbed, the sounds growing louder and now accompanied by strange flashes of light as the steam and smoke whirled around their heads. For the first time Zacky felt real fear. He had told a kind lie to Matt, the person he had killed to get the heart now pulsing on his friends chest had been female and one of the local whores. Not a villain from their list and certainly not deserving of her fate. He didn’t know why he had chosen her, it had seemed that it had to be that way and he found the whole act had taken on a dreamlike quality influenced by the cursed blade now in Lilith’s left hand. He shook his head, both to dispel the image and try and see what was going on.  
“Return this soul to us, the darkness shall not keep him.”  
Lilith almost had to shout to be heard, determined to ignore the whispered protests from the spirit world about giving up this offering that had so recently come their way. She could feel him close, it was working and it only needed that one violent act of faith. She closed her eyes and allowed the dagger to drop, slamming it through the now violently pumping heart and into Brian’s chest. There was a blinding flash of light, all of the living in the room knocked to the floor as the candles went out and the entire building shook and jumped, a little plaster drifting down from the ceiling.  
Silence.  
Zacky sat up groggily and instantly crawled to Johnny. His friend was out cold, the fall had caused him to catch his head on the rough brickwork and now there was a thin gash on his forehead weeping blood. He pulled the handkerchief from his pocket and pressed it against the wound which elicited a moan. He glanced up and saw that Claire was beside him, her face pale and questioning. There was no movement from the table but Lilith was already back on her feet and hopefully looking down at her lover with a mix of hope and imminent despair.  
“Brian ?”  
There was no longer any sign of the dreadful wounds on his body, no scars or anything to mar the pale skin. His face was peaceful, the full lips now a healthy pink and she held her breath as she leant down to lay her head against his chest. She smiled, he was now warm against her cheek and there was that most wonderful of sounds. A strong and living heartbeat. Her words were barely a whisper.  
“It worked.”  
The others scrambled up, Johnny still groggy and half supported by Zacky as he leant forward to look. Brian seemed to now only be sleeping, his pallor still that of someone who had been deathly sick but now they could see that he was gently breathing and the fingers of one hand twitched.   
Claire grinned and whirled towards the door.  
“I’m going to get Matt, cover him up or he will get a chill. By the way how are we going to tell him ?”  
“Tell me what ? What the fuck is going on ?”  
Lilith smiled as Johnny started to laugh and Zacky put a hand under Brian’s shoulder and helped him sit up. For a dead man he looked completely healthy although a little confused and now wondered why Lilith had silent tears falling down her face and why Zacky was holding onto him as if his life depended on it. His confusion increased further as the door was flung open and Matt skidded to a halt, stunned to see this impossible sight. Brian felt so cold, disorientated and unsure that he remained almost frozen to the spot.   
Only Claire had the presence of mind to drape a blanket over his shoulders and turn the gaslights back on. Brian stared in growing disbelief at what looked horribly like an alter all around him and wondered just how drunk he had managed to get the night before for them to be forced to use magic to bring him around. His head felt achy, the feeling of forgetting something important was nagging at him and he felt disorientated, more so by only now realising that he was down in the cellar of the house.  
“First you need a stiff drink and a warm bath and then we will explain everything.”  
“If it involves Johnny and that Irish whore I don’t want to know.”  
Brian carefully stood, his legs and back seemed to be made of rock and he wondered why they were all still staring at him as Lilith appeared in his arms. He liked that, it was like he hadn’t held her in a long time and he kissed the top of her head as they made their way back into the house. Claire lingered behind, performing the closing spells to seal the magic back into the other world. She and Lilith would have further work to do to stop the dead from following Brian back and she wondered if they had truly managed to bring him back alone or if there would be a price to pay for this. The warnings from their mentor Old Peg and the lore of her kind since back before the burning times said there would be although she had no belief in the threefold laws.   
The chill in the air lingered, a warning that it was not over in any way and Claire shook her head as she went out and locked the door behind her. She could hear the happy voices of her friends and forced a smile as Zacky took her arm and led her upstairs.


	3. Evening

“I don’t remember a thing. Not after I went after Durand anyway.”  
“It may come back to you. I can’t say. Not like I’ve ever brought someone back from the dead before.”  
Brian nodded and passed Lilith the whiskey bottle. He looked up at the sky, the stars and clouds seemed to be moving slower and he still couldn’t process what they had told him. It couldn’t be possible and yet the pale, haunted looks on his friend’s faces and their tears….  
He had been dead for three days.  
It was ridiculous. Nobody comes back from the dead and he knew there were no wounds or scars that hadn’t been there before. True it was proving hard to get warm and he still had the nagging feeling of having forgotten something but it must be kind of hard to forget you’d died. In your best friends arms too. He ran a hand through his still wet hair, the bath had felt pretty amazing and cast a glance at Lilith who was curled into his shoulder. Just what had she done to manage this ?  
Lilith thought he had taken it pretty well all things considered once they had persuaded him that it was no joke and had gone over what had happened with him. Brian was a pragmatic man, he could either deal with it or go slightly insane and there was little point in the latter. He wanted to know how but she really didn’t want to go into specifics and neither did Zacky. Instead they had mapped it out from the moment he had left the house until they had returned with his body and the girls had set to work.  
“I want to remember. It’s like a nagging ache at the moment. What happened with Durand, that guy was clearly fucking dangerous and we can’t leave him loose in the city.”  
“I took care of him.”  
The matter of fact tone in her voice called Brian to pull away from her and sit up. The roof garden was peaceful, an oasis in the city sky that they all visited at least once a day. Apart from the city sounds and odd airship overhead you could forget you were only a short distance from the very heart of London and its evil and good. They had spread a blanket out on the grass that Johnny lovingly cultivated and had set to simply enjoying each other’s company and the warming alcohol. It was August and still quite sultry at night, Brian now felt even colder and his tone reflected the ice that now settled on his brain.  
“You killed him.”  
Lilith smiled slightly, his eyes searching hers for anything that would tell him he was mistaken. He saw now what Johnny had seen earlier. Lilith was too thin, too pale and it nagged at Brian’s heart that she had gone through so much pain while he had been gone.  
“He killed you, he had to pay for that. The others don’t know.”  
Brian took the bottle back and drank deeply. There was a lot she wasn’t telling him and he hated it when she kept secrets from him. She sat up, aware that he was angry with her and accepting that there would come a point when she would have to tell him everything. The sweet faced boy had a temper and was the only man she had ever been a little afraid of. Lilith liked it, he could be rough in bed and out of it but this was more serious than just bondage and role-play.  
Her fingers crept along the back of his neck, feeling the tension before lightly touching his shoulder. The muscles rippled making her mouth go dry but his handsome face was still impassive and it reminded her of him lying dead on the alter. Brian slipped an arm around her waist and turned to face her properly, his other hand working into the mass of curling tresses that tumbled down her back. He yanked hard, eliciting a yelp as Lilith’s head was held back tightly but also a smile which he couldn’t help but return.  
“Then I won’t be telling them but you need to explain how you brought me back.”  
Lilith considered, noting that he hadn’t let go of her hair.  
“It’s a Sumerian resurrection spell with some added mojo thrown in. Took us all that time to find the text and ingredients but I had help. We couldn’t let you go Bri, we need you.”  
His lips slammed against hers in a fierce kiss, it suddenly felt like she had saved him from something unspeakable and Brian felt a real fear go through him. Something had happened in those three days, something he couldn’t yet visualise but for a man who had never feared death it came as a revelation. He had seen it, been there and returned, there was nothing he now wouldn’t do to keep breathing and stay with his lover and his family.  
“I love you Lilith, I never say it enough.”  
“My Brian…”  
She smiled at the whispered words, true he was normally too cocky to actually say those words but the warm brown eyes and full lips never lied. She murmured her love for him and surrendered to another kiss as his arms tightened around her before realising that there was someone now sitting on the blanket with them.  
“Hi Johnny.”  
Brian gave his buddy the death glare before grinning and passing him the whiskey bottle. Before long a party was in full swing, Matt appeared with more alcohol and the latest update for his friend on the various cases they were working on. Claire and Lilith were enjoying the sight of all the guys together, Zacky sitting on the edge of the roof next to them. All was back to where it needed to be in the world and it felt good to be alive. A sense of wellbeing settled down in warm contrast to the pain and grief of the previous weeks.  
There was a lot of work that still needed to be done. Matt had contracts on several men in the city and one case pending that would require an assignment further north. He was also going to use that to go home and see his family which was a subject he had been meaning to bring up. His family did not exactly approve of his friends although the four men had grown up together. They had made their unease at the girls presence very plain at the last house party and it had been made very clear that his parents were disappointed with his career choices.  
“So you’re saying we won’t be welcome ?”  
Johnny hid his smirk, winding Matt up could prove to be somewhat painful. Matt grinned, the resulting dimples making his face boyish and young, it would be a boring few days but the chaos last time had nearly got him disinherited and he relied upon the income to feed their need for new technology. They could get by without but it made it a lot easier.  
“No. Not after the nude spell casting on the croquet lawn and you trying to drunkenly climb Claire’s balcony the last time.”  
Zacky looked up from his woman’s cleavage at the mention of her name and tried to focus on the conversation. He wanted to forget the night completely and erase this whole few days from his memory. Brian was home, he had watched Claire lock the knife away and tried to forget the dead woman now lying in Bucks Row. He wondered if she had been found by now before shaking his head and listening to his friends laughter.  
“All I was doing was a simple protection spell. I thought your ma might be grateful.”  
“You were stark bollock naked Lilith !”  
Brian’s voice rose above the others as he winked at Matt. They both knew that Lilith naked was a sight that all of them enjoyed and to deny otherwise was plainly lying. Matt knew it too, drinking in the sight of his friend restored to him and life put back onto its even keel.  
“C’mon, you were in the pantry with that cute housemaid with the big boobs or you never would have heard the commotion.”  
“I was instructing Gwendolyn on her duties.”  
Zacky choked at the look on Matt’s face and listened as Claire and Lilith launched into a discussion on just how dangerous those duties might be. They didn’t notice the rain clouds gathering until the first heavy drops started to fall. It was drawing close to dawn, a blush of pink on the horizon that was rapidly smothered by the swirling rain clouds. All of them needed sleep, the stress and pain of the last week would all too quickly catch up but still they were loath to leave each other in case this had all been a wonderful dream and Brian was still dead downstairs.  
“I promise I’m fine. Will you all stop staring ?”  
“No, I’ve never seen a dead man walking around before.”  
Lilith shook rain from his hair and Brian pulled a face at his friends, Zacky in particular after that last remark. Now that they were all back inside and making their way down the narrow steps to the attic floor, it became a little more real again and he stared at the ceiling before glancing into the witch’s lair. Claire and Lilith worked in the darkened rooms, the shelves and tables crammed with books and jars. He tried not to look at the various knives, dissected animals and fuck knows what else. They were great girls but probably not destined for heaven and the room reminded all of them of a medieval castle from a fairy tale. There was even a broom in one corner although Claire assured them all that it was merely for sweeping the floor.  
“You look……older.”  
Zacky dodged the flying slap aimed at his head and laughed. His friend could be a little on the vain side. He tried to ignore the box on the shelf with the knife in, still feeling the hum in his head from wielding it, from feeling it sink into flesh and bone and….  
“Zack ? You ok ?”  
Claire’s concerned face swum back into his vision as he realised he had been gripping the bannister too hard. The others were looking at him, not entirely sure why he was swaying and pale. It had been a long night and it was hardly surprising they were all starting to feel it. Zacky attempted a wan smile and hugged her a little tighter.  
“I’m fine. Tired and hungry maybe but it’s a bit late for sleeping and early for breakfast.”  
Lilith picked up a pickled frog in a jar and waved it at him with a grin causing Matt to demand that they all go and sleep. There was no harm in them all having a day or two off before resuming the full rigour of their routines. After all that had happened it would be good to unwind and he wanted to be sure they would all be ok before he went home.  
“You guys go, Claire and I have to finish tidying up downstairs.”  
Claire nodded, lifting a heavy old book from the shelf.  
“Don’t want a portal opening up or someone coming back for Brian, who knows what shit you got up to in three days.”  
The boy grinned and kissed Lilith’s lips and Claire’s cheek before pushing Zacky towards the stairs that led down to the bedroom floor. He didn’t want to think about that now, he still felt cold and the rain hadn’t helped. The thought that Lilith wouldn’t be coming directly to his bed didn’t help either, he wanted her, his mind drawn to the swell of her breast in the black gown.  
“When I remember I’ll let you know. I may have been ruling hell, kinda nice thought.”  
“You were probably Satan’s bitch.”  
“Thanks Johnny. You’re too short for him.”  
The argument continued as the men disappeared downstairs. Claire waited until they were out of sight before closing and locking the door. They both started collecting items from the shelves and checking for books and amulets.  
“Can we be sure we closed it off ?”  
Lilith shrugged, the spell didn’t go into great detail on this part and it had made them both nervous. It had been easy to brush aside when all that mattered was getting Brian back but now they needed to be sure nothing would follow. There were certain things that even their magic would not combat and she couldn’t bear the thought of more loss, more death.   
“We hit it with every closure and protection spell we have. Can always go down and consult Old Peg again if we need to.”  
“No more voodoo !”  
Claire couldn’t keep the laughter out of her voice. Old Peg had been more than willing to help them but her idea that a zombie Brian would be just as useful as a living one had been a little disheartening. She frowned and looked at her friend.  
“Did you tell him how we did it ?”  
“Not the details no. I need time to break it to him that Zacky killed someone to do that.”  
“He will be angry.”  
Lilith nodded, there was no doubt that Brian would be furious. He loved Zacky, it had been made very clear that neither man was willing to give the other up to be with them and neither girl had minded. It had merely been a measure of that love that Zack was willing to do the unthinkable in order to achieve the objective.  
“I know but he will be more angry if we don’t close down that alter.”  
Claire knew that this was her way of avoiding the conversation and decided to leave it. There would be enough implications of this to deal with. Brian was dealing with it too well, Zacky wasn’t dealing with it at all and Lilith was refusing to accept that there had been any other option. Claire agreed but there was always going to be a price to pay.  
They went down to the basement room and spent a while putting all the equipment away and cleaning up. There was no sign of the struggle, nothing to suggest what they had done but the room still had a cold spot that would not move and another hour of charms and incantation refused to remove it. The smell of ion and salt lingered, the mark on the floor easily covered by the rug and all the candles replaced and reblessed.  
“Old Peg’s it is then.”  
Lilith pulled a face and Claire picked up the last of the books and raised her hand to show the thick metal key that would lock the room tight. Both were hot and exhausted, wanting nothing more than to crawl into bed with warm muscled bodies.  
“Lock it up with that key she gave us and go back for something stronger yes. I don’t like that we can’t raise the temperature back to normal.”  
Lilith pulled her into a hug and steered her friend out of the door, locking it soundly behind them. They turned out the last of the gaslights and ignored the grey sunlight trying to break through the windows to climb up the stairs.  
Neither noticed that the key was pushed from the lock and onto the floor.  
Or the slow drip of blood that followed it.


	4. Dreams

Zacky was cold.  
There was nothing around him but tightly packed buildings and narrow alleys that he didn’t recognise although the spire of St. Paul’s in the distance told him it was London. He snuggled further into the heavy overcoat and pulled the collar up. It was summer, he shouldn’t be cold but there was a chill in his bones and it made him want to hurry. Home ? No, not home because he had someplace to be and something to do but he couldn’t remember what.  
A door flung against brickwork made him jump as a man and woman virtually fell out of the pub and into the street. Both were drunk and laughing, the woman clinging to the man with a slight air of propriety. Zacky couldn’t remember but someone held him like that, he carried on walking thinking that he should remember at least a name. He followed the couple for a while, wandering aimlessly after them with little design other than it was a place to go.  
There were people on the streets although the clock on a church tower between buildings said it had gone midnight. There was noise, small children in rags, drunks picking fights and soldiers celebrating leave and having coin in their pockets. The dark haired man felt detached from it all, watching as the soldiers propositioned the women standing on the corner and then disappeared down into shadowed alleyways. He knew where he was now and there was foreboding.   
Whitechapel.  
He had sworn to never come back here after the night they had resurrected Brian. It had been a week now and there seemed to have been no ill effects. The girls had spent three days working until they were finally satisfied that everything was well, Brian was his usual annoying self and they had a new case to work on. Only Zacky seemed still disturbed by it. He was eating badly, sleeping even worse and Claire was concerned. He had brushed it off as the effect of too much work and not enough time to unwind and suggested a holiday. When Matt departed home they were going with him to stay in a small cottage just off the estate. Some time to unwind, just the two of them and Zacky had it planned. He would propose properly and legally, make it a celebration of their lives together and leave all the darkness and his evil behind.  
So why was he back in Whitechapel ?  
He couldn’t remember leaving the house or walking in this direction, it had merely been a whim when sleep wouldn’t come and there was little to do. The new case required research and normally he enjoyed scavenging through deeds, titles and various documents to put them on the trail of this new menace. It would be a profitable job, the man in question had stolen a considerable sum of money from his employer and they had been promised a substantial sum to bring him back to answer for it. Johnny had new weapons for them to test, bright sparkling things that delivered considerable kick. Zacky half smiled to himself.  
“Looking for some company mister ?”  
His green eyes flashed as he flinched and looked to his left where a woman stood leaning against the metal lamppost, the gaslight casting her face in eerie shadows. He blinked and stopped, she was certainly not attractive to him in anyway and yet he couldn’t move on. The woman leered, years of drink and poverty showed in the lines in her face and the feeble attempt that she had made to make herself somehow attractive to whatever client might come along. He felt a hot wave of anger flood his system. Goddam fucking whores, a guy couldn’t even walk the street without being propositioned. His feet moved forward, a smile forming on his face.  
“How much ?”  
“For a posh gent like yourself ? Five bob.”  
The woman looked like she couldn’t believe her luck which somehow amused him even more. His hand was tucked into his pocket and his fingers brushed against something. It would be so easy to make the bitch pay, make them all pay. Zacky couldn’t remember quite for what but it seemed to matter and he scarcely noticed following the woman into the warren of alleys and mazes that lined the tenement streets. He could hear a hum in his head, the blade back in his pocket where it belonged. It had attached itself to the new master and would now sing only for him.  
She chattered away in front of him and complimented his clothes and his looks as if her opinion might matter. There was a feeling of power now that Zacky couldn’t ignore and he wanted to let it go, make her scream and plead for some mercy that he wasn’t capable of. He knew now why he had come out and what he had to do. His right hand tightened around the blade handle and he heard it inside his head, whispering how easy it would be and how he had got away with it before. Rip this one like the other…..  
“Will here do ?”  
The woman was already hitching up her ragged skirts and Zacky started to shake his head violently. This wasn’t him, he didn’t hurt people unless it was absolutely necessary and he had his woman at home, sleeping now and waiting for him. He felt tears forming in his eyes and yet the blade was now out in the open, glittering in the moonlight as the incantations down the blade spoke to him and made it sound all too easy. He started to moan, it was locked away far from his reach and this wasn’t possible. He couldn’t be tempted to do this again, the last time had been important and he had only done it to save Brian, his best friend, his lover….  
“I……can’t.”  
His voice sounded strangled and he put his hand out of sight as the woman grinned and advanced on him. If she was to see it she would get the wrong idea or she would panic and scream. He was sweating, not cold now but torn between the screaming rage coming from the blade and the ice cold fear in his heart. Ben couldn’t see or think straight, his breathing reduced to short gasps as the battle in his head screamed to new heights.  
“Bit of a droop love ? Don’t worry, I’ll help you with that.”  
The tired looking woman touched his sleeve and Zacky reacted without thinking, one hand looping around her neck and pulling her to him so that her back was against his chest. She was startled but didn’t cry out, obviously anticipating that the customer simply liked it a little rough. Her eyes widened as his hand clamped over her mouth hard and his right hand came into view, cutting quickly across her throat in a single motion. There was no scream, no time as blood sprayed into the air in a fine mist…  
“NO !!”  
The young man sat bolt upright, eyes now wide open and his lungs desperate to suck in air. He was in his own room, the window opposite was open so that he could see the curtains softly moving in the air. Claire stirred beside him and slowly opened her eyes, confused by the sudden noise and the fact that he was shaking, sweat dripping down the back of his neck as he shivered and both arms wrapped themselves around his body. Claire sat up, pushing her hair away from her face as she tried to work out what had terrified him so.  
“What happened, are you ok ?”  
Zacky turned so that she could see his face and it woke her fully. Claire had never seen him look so anguished, his green eyes full of tears as he continued to shake. Instantly she reached for him and he clung onto her, his face buried into her shoulder and neck as he fought to regain some air and get a grip on his thoughts. It had only been a nightmare, a really horrible and nasty one but nevertheless he wasn’t in the slums and he hadn’t killed anyone.  
“It was a dream, a nightmare. I’m sorry if I scared you.”  
She stroked his back, he sounded so young and so unlike his normal calm self that it scared her. Claire knew that something was so badly wrong now that it couldn’t be ignored, she would have to talk him into seeing a doctor or maybe even a priest but all that mattered now was holding him, comforting him from whatever he had seen in his dreams.  
“You scared yourself Zack, not like you to dream.”  
“Hardly ever actually.”  
He felt the tension oozing from the spots where her fingers gently worked the cramped muscles and he allowed himself to breathe a little easier. He wished he’d cut his hair shorter now, the dark bangs were damp with sweat and irritated his face and he pushed them away before staring at his fingers. Was that blood or just the dark shadows of the room that made it look that way ? When he blinked again it was gone, replaced by Claire regarding him with worried eyes.  
“I’m ok, sorry for waking you like that.”  
She smiled gently, taking in every line and curve of his face in the light coming in from the window. Zacky’s face always seemed a little grave until he smiled and Claire traced her fingers down his cheekbone as they locked eyes. Sounds of the street were quietly filtering up from below and the clock on the mantle said it was only a little after seven. The beginnings of another day but not one that they needed to particularly start now. He returned the smile, leaning in to kiss her gently as he eased her back against the pillow. Now was when he loved her most, the daylight reflected off her porcelain skin and her body his to enjoy with no shame and nothing hidden.   
Claire was a little relieved at the hunger in his eyes, he had hardly touched her over the last week and it was unusual. Zacky was a passionate man hidden beneath the calm exterior and she had always enjoyed the fact that he wasn’t above taking what he wanted when the mood was on him. He would never hurt her, any games they played were strictly controlled by safe words and mutual respect but she was his in every way and both knew who the dominant partner was.  
His lips found hers in the softest of kisses, hands wandering over familiar curves and planes as they enjoyed being alive and being with each other. He needed this to banish the nightmare, needed to feel her arch under him, the low moan in his ear telling him that she loved him and that this was real and not the dark alley of his dream. Claire closed her eyes, nobody could make her feel like Zacky did, the times when Brian or Lilith joined the party were fun but he was hers and it was never any better than this.  
Neither knew how much time passed, their lovemaking too intense for anything to break in to the magic between them that had nothing to do with anything but each other. When both finally slept again it was peaceful and Zack didn’t dream of anything, the peace and solitude of her company was enough to make him feel like himself and he woke refreshed and in better spirits than he had been in for a long while. He whistled as he washed in the icy water of their tiny bathroom, noting that stubble really didn’t suit him and deciding that yes, he badly needed a haircut.  
“Don’t you dare !”  
Claire’s reflection appeared in the mirror next to him and her lover chuckled.  
“Cut that mind reading shit out. Makes me nervous.”  
“Why, are you cheating on me ?”  
Zacky flicked cold water onto her shoulder causing an outbreak of unladylike expletives.  
“No. One, because there is no more beautiful woman in England than you and two, because you would know before I’d got her knickers off.”  
“Damn right I would, only Lilith can lock me out.”  
He kissed her smirk and turned back to the mirror.  
“Convenient given that Lilith has the cutest…”  
She playfully slapped his bare ass and elicited a squeak before disappearing to dress. Zacky took his time shaving and deciding which suit to wear. He liked the feeling of dressing well and wondered whether the dark blue or black would be best before his fingers touched something else and he froze. His winter coat. The one from the dream.   
For a moment he didn’t want to move before he shook his head and resumed his hunt for the right suit. It was just a stupid dream, nothing more. The damn knife was locked back up in the attic upstairs and he knew for a fact that the key was hidden somewhere where he rarely went. Down Lilith’s cleavage to be exact. If he wanted it he would have to get past Brian and that was one fight he only occasionally felt like waging.  
Deciding on the black he pulled it from the wardrobe and considered which bow tie, his free hand batting against the winter coat again and this time he paused. There had been something of a clank, his hand connected with something bulky in the pocket and he felt the thrill of a cold sweat break out down his back. Slowly he backed away; laying the suit on the bed before staring at the coat.  
“I’ll go put the tea on.”  
Claire disappeared out into the hall with a rustle of violet silk, her hair neatly pinned up in the very latest of fashions as Zacky continued to stare. He didn’t want to put his hand in there but he knew he would. It was impossible but he already knew what would be in there and he felt the fear and panic as he reached out. It felt like he was back in the dream as he pulled the blade free from the material.  
It seemed to hum and mock him, the metal hidden under the dried rust of blood.  
Everything that Zacky feared seemed to have been made flesh and he felt his head spin as the floor rushed up to meet him.


	5. Boxing

Brian smiled as he pulled Lilith along by the hand, her delighted laugh adding to the swell of happiness in his chest. They had spent the evening together, leaving the gang behind to their various exploits which would lead back to the serious business of work in the morning. It had been a pleasant week off which all of them had agreed was needed. It was rare that there was any downtime at all and if his dying had proved anything it was that life was precious and they needed to appreciate love, life and each other.  
That was all fine but as neither Brian or Lilith had an attention span that leant itself to down time they had taken to sleeping all day and disappearing into the city at night to sample the nightlife and some of the more exotic alternatives the city had to offer. One night it had been an illegal card game, the next an opium den where they had got pleasantly stoned and didn’t return until mid-afternoon, much to Claire’s disgust and Matt’s amusement. Tonight it had been a gin den, the gentleman even persuaded to bang out some tunes on the piano as they passed around some very rough liquor. To say that both were a little drunk was an understatement.  
“I don’t think they were ready for the bawdy song about the gnome and the wooden spoon.”  
Lilith giggled as the smile on Brian’s face turned into a smirk and he gestured with his free hand.  
“I wrote that in Johnny’s honour and shall play it for him when he finally brings a girl home.”  
“That’s why he hasn’t and why Matt still won’t let us meet Bridget.”  
Brian laughed out loud, true that their house would take most people some getting used to in-between the minor explosions, outbreaks of magic induced chaos and some rather large egos. None of them were guaranteed to behave in polite company and most of their neighbours had learned not to knock on the door or call on the ladies of the house.  
“Starting to think Johnny likes boys.”  
Lilith shook her head, pinching him on the ass.  
“You wish he liked boys so you can get your hands on him. Johnny is definitely more interested in women.”  
He pulled her into his arms and silenced her with a long kiss. Lilith was a vision in black velvet, her hair pinned neatly under a hat decorated with crow’s feathers. Brian loved to look at her, the innocence in her eyes was a lure to the worst part of him, made worse by knowing there was actually no innocence there at all. It was late now and the streets were nearly empty, there was something in him that wanted to take her up against the cold brick wall just for kicks but a hard tug on his ear told him that she thought otherwise.   
“Not here with that man watching.”  
Brian looked to his left and spotted the man watching them from the shadows with a leer. He looked unkempt, a cap pulled low across a brute face that showed little intelligence, his clothes patched and ragged. He simply smiled, kissing Lilith again just to show who exactly she belonged to before facing the man.  
“Can we help you ?”  
“How much for the lady ?”  
Lilith laughed and considered removing the man’s mouth before Brian leant back and fixed him with an unpleasant grin. Something was going to kick off and she couldn’t deny that his violent side turned her on, causing her to hold her breath. She wanted to see him hit the man, to watch him hurt someone.  
“More money than you will ever see.”  
The man seemed unperturbed, he wandered down toward them. His eyes stayed on the swell of her breasts under the black buttoned coat and Brian seriously wanted to hurt him. He kept Lilith tucked behind him, wondering if she would hex the man into the floor before he got a punch in.  
“Big words for a pretty boy. We got a boxing match going on back there. Bare knuckles if you’re man enough. The lady can constitute your bet.”  
“You’re on.”  
Lilith blinked in shock, somewhat surprised but a little amused that he would bother to fight anyone for her honour. She was too fond of that pretty face to want it beaten too badly and he had been dead only the week before. She followed behind the two men as they cut through a back alley and into a rubble space. Lilith had to run to keep up as the man opened another gate and they descended some steps down into a series of cold whitewashed cellars.  
There was the sound of men shouting and cheering in the distance and Brian was determined now that he was going to teach some shit a lesson and get a little satisfaction for the insult in general. He was aware that common sense screamed against this, that for all he knew the guy he was going to fight might be Matt’s size or bigger but he had trained hard and was one of the best fighters in the city. He also knew that Lilith loved the sight of blood.  
“Hey lads, found us another one.”  
As their eyes adjusted to the light they could see a makeshift room and maybe sixty men and a few women crowded around a hastily erected ring. Already they were dragging a man out the way, his head hanging limp and blood dripping onto the rough floor. His knuckles were bruised and open but clearly it hadn’t been enough to stop the large man in the ring. All of Brian’s worries had been right, even a man mountain like Matt would have looked small next to him and he was clearly ready to fight again. The newcomers stood out, the girl finely dressed and exquisite, the young man with her in a tailored three piece suit that would have cost more than any of these men would make in a year.   
“You sure about this ?”  
Lilith’s whisper met Brian’s ear and he felt a grin form.  
“Nothing to it sugar.”  
She flexed her mind and landed a solid twist to one of his ears which made him turn, the smile purely for her. Both knew that she would stop the fight if needed and normally his pride was fine with it. She was not the first one to pull him from a bar fight and Zacky seemed to be enjoying giving up that duty. He blew her a kiss as another man stepped forward and looked him up and down. This one was counting a pile of money and seemed to be in charge, a bullish double chin echoed the ruddy cheeks of a man with a drinks problem.  
“Rules are simple. You last three rounds or knock Boris here out and you walk out with the money.”  
The rat faced man that they had followed smiled nastily and whispered in his ear causing the fat man to smile even wider.  
“You lose and we all get a taste of that pretty girl there.”  
Brian shrugged, how little they knew of how this would go. Lilith had never looked so enticing, the smirk on her face telling them all that she had complete confidence in her man and his abilities. He handed her his jacket and started loosening his tie.  
“Fair enough, sounds like you’re keen to give away your cash.”  
“He’s never been beaten.”  
The huge man grinned showing broken teeth to match the broken nose. This newcomer was too handsome to fight, no sign that he’d ever gotton his hands dirty let alone taken on a man like Rosoff. He leered at the girl and then looked away as her eyes shone in the dark, something in his brain flashing back to his grandmother in Russia and her tales of bad blood. It shook him and Lilith smiled, never hurt to put some extra help on Brian’s side.  
Now however she was distracted as he handed the crisp cotton shirt to her. Lilith loved the ripple of muscles down the tattooed arms and the strong chest that showed these men they might have been too hasty in their bets. This was no green kid, the man before them had the build of a fighter and the arrogance was coming off him in waves. The atmosphere was thick as the two men faced each other, the crowd suddenly silent. A few yet to place their bets changed their minds and decided to bet on the shorter newcomer. Lilith stood to one side, an aura of do not touch keeping the spectators away from her as she calmly watched the fat man stand between them.  
“Three rounds. Money or the pretty lady. Good luck gentlemen.”  
Lilith winced as the Russian didn’t wait for the man to stop speaking and landed a heavy punch to Brian’s jaw. To his credit he didn’t go down, merely swung a right hand and connected with some thick ribs that felt like they broke his hand. Clearly this would be harder than he had first thought. The Russian lumbered forward and Brian decided to use his speed to stay from getting his head caved in. Two more lightening punches to the gut and chin caused the Russian to yell out in frustration and Lilith felt herself relax a little.  
The crowd hooted and bade for blood as the two men traded blows. They were all somewhat surprised that the stranger was doing so well and holding his ground. Most of these fights barely lasted a round and it was good to see someone actually putting up a fight. They cheered as the handsome newcomer landed a haymaker punch to the nose and the solid crunch of breaking bone could be heard above the noise as blood flew in all directions. The witch smiled to herself, watching the droplets run down her lover’s chest. Hastily the fat man called for the end of the round.  
Lilith kissed Brian’s bloody lip, savouring the taste of him as his hands found her waist and he winked at her. Both were turned on, knowing that they would end the night in a mess of blood and each other. It was heartbreakingly erotic and his voice was husky.  
“Big man is a pussy little bitch baby, shall I break his neck ?”  
“Don’t get cocky, he could cave your skull in and bringing you back from the dead twice in a fortnight would be a bore.”  
She squeezed a hand between them, brushing his crotch and causing Brian to catch his breath before pulling away from her. They shared a smile and then he walked back to stand in front of the very angry Rosoff, his face a swollen mess. It was time to squash the bug, no man had broken his nose since the fights he had been in as a boy in the slums of St Petersburg. Brian merely stared, determined to get under the man’s skin and force more mistakes.   
Again there was no waiting for the start of the match and Brian found himself defending against a reign of blows that fell from ribs to face to chest. He was forced back, Lilith now watching with more concern and wishing that Zacky, Matt and Johnny were nearby to stop this rather than herself. Magic could be deflected and it was dangerous to use it in the open. The days of being burned at the stake may have gone but she didn’t fancy being on the end of a lynch mob either.   
“Dead man ! I take your woman !”  
The giant crowed as Brian shook blood from a nasty cut above his eye. He was bleeding freely from his nose too and the Russian himself had a bruised and swollen cheekbone. The fight had gone from business to somehow personal and the crowd could sense that this would only end when one of the men was a broken body on the floor. Lilith intended to make sure it wasn’t her man and wandered a little closer, the other patrons unconsciously falling back.  
“My woman could pull your guts out your nose. Watch that brute mouth.”  
Lilith smiled as her lover virtually flew across the room and landed a flurry of hard sustained blows, forcing the other man to cover up and back away. Again the crowd cheered, the noise almost deafening in the enclosed space and suddenly the smile dropped from her face. A cold chill passed up her back, something here was wrong. Brian was good, quick and fast and she had never really had a doubt that he could take down this man and yet this was different.  
The blows were almost too quick, Brian’s fists almost a blur and the crowd looked confused as he literally lifted the giant up with one hand and flung him onto the hard floor. Lilith tried to see his face as he straddled the man, landing blow after blow until the man’s face was nothing but a pinkish white mush. The crowd had started to hush so that the heavy blows could be heard crunching against bone and cartilage. The fat man looked poised to interfere, this was going too far and now some panic was setting in. If the kid killed his fighter then the promotor knew that they could all wind up on the gallows.  
“BRIAN.”  
Lilith’s voice carried with authority, the command added to with the full power of a natural witch and now he did turn. She felt all the blood drain from her face and stepped back. Evil radiated out and although it was still his angel face it was not her Brian. Not even close. There was a light behind his eyes that made them seem deep and black. A scream broke free and she lost her footing, landing hard on the floor as she continued to stare at the demon before her.  
“We have a winner !”  
The promoter pulled Brian up and raised his arm as others rushed to check on the fallen giant. He was silent, not quite sure what had happened, only that Lilith was sitting on the floor and staring at him like her heart would break in two.  
“Well done, well done. Want to fight again ?”  
Brian shook his head and accepted the money before quickly crossing over to Lilith and extending a hand. She stared up at him, seeing only her lover now and the concern on his face. Her mind raced but there was nothing now but warm brown eyes and a mass of bruising. Carefully letting him pull her up Lilith rested her head against his warm, damp chest and closed her eyes. He felt the same and her voice came out as merely a whisper.  
“What happened to you ?”  
“I won didn’t I ?”  
“Yes but you nearly killed him.”  
Brian shrugged, kissing her again gently and only now seeing the unconscious man being attended to by what passed as a doctor. He hadn’t realised that he was capable of laying someone out like that and now felt more than a little confused, he couldn’t even remember the last few minutes of the fight. The worry and fear on Lilith’s face also concerned him, even more so when she cried out and pressed a hand against her head.  
Claire’s message was urgent and simple.  
COME HOME NOW AND HELP ME !!


	6. Hyde Park

Matt drifted between sleep and half wakefulness, wondering if he could simply stay right here and never move again. He watched the patterns on the ceiling and listened drowsily to the carts and traffic going up the streets outside. It was good to be away from the house sometimes, away from the noise mostly considering none of his friends knew the definition of the word quiet. He liked sleeping at the office and it would enable him to get a head start on the case for the day.  
Not that he could think of that now, a certain girl was on his mind and he wanted to see her again before he left for this damn visit home. She was a governess, a beautiful Irish girl with long blonde hair and the way she said his name just drove him mad. Bridget made a point of being in Hyde Park when he walked through, first it had been a shy smile and a good morning which brought a blush to her cheeks and a flash of dimples in his.  
He had of course made the mistake of mentioning this to Brian who had immediately got the wrong idea about just how far this had gone although it had now extended to polite dinner dates and even the odd kiss but he liked her far too much to push things any further without at least having a discussion on how serious she was about him. He felt a little nervous about that but had arranged to meet her in the park as usual. Her charges were two children, twins aged about four or five and it was simple to amuse them while they fed the ducks and politely discussed the weather until the children lost interest. He had told her that he helped run a detective agency, she had been intrigued by the powerful firearm he wore under his jacket, one too many enemies now to go about unarmed.  
This meeting was important as he had missed their date the previous week due to one of his friends being dead and while he wasn’t about to admit that he wanted to make it up to her. Matt realised that maybe for the first time in his life he was in love and that would mean admitting to Bridget that he lived with a short drunk scientist, two loquacious sexually ambiguous sociopaths and a pair of witches. Somehow he wasn’t looking forward to that conversation either.   
After dressing carefully and stopping to buy flowers from the flower girl on the corner Matt headed straight for the park. He could see his house in the distance and stopped again to buy a newspaper before settling on the bench beside the lake. The trees and flowers were still in bloom although the September morning had a nip in the air and he felt good. Things at home were right again and he could think about maybe getting something else in his life other than work.  
The headline in the paper recorded in sensational detail how another woman had been found brutally murdered in Whitechapel and where the queen was and what was happening across the Empire and in the new science halls of the city. He read through the business section and was considering the horse racing when a voice broke into his thoughts.  
“Hello Matt.”  
He jumped to his feet and dropped the paper, all six foot of him blushing as Bridget smiled at him and ushered the children towards the ducks. She was as gorgeous as he remembered, a pale blue dress that matched her eyes and a simple straw hat made Matt blush and she caught her breath at the tall handsome man who’s serious gaze could break into such a sweet smile. He handed over the bouquet and they sat together under the weeping willow tree.  
“It’s good to see you, I’m sorry I missed last week. Few problems at home.”  
“Is everything ok now ?”  
She was curious about Matt, he dressed well and clearly had money but seemed loath to talk about himself other than the basics. He had mentioned friends named Johnny and Zacky, another friend called Brian and that was about it apart from that his family lived further north these days having left London behind. Matt smiled, enjoying simply looking at her.  
“All fine, we have a new case to work on and I’m planning a trip home.”  
Bridget’s face fell, her job was pleasant enough but dull and meeting him here had given her something out of the routine to look forward to. The family she worked for would never have approved of course. Now he was going away it seemed and she wondered if this was his way of breaking things off with her. Matt noticed the disappointment and put his hand over hers.  
“My father wants to discuss some stuff with me, he’s not in the best of health and as he’s a Baronet it would fall to me to inherit.”  
“Your father is a Baronet ?”  
Matt grinned, hearing the surprise in her voice. He hadn’t wanted to scare her away with the news that his dad knew the queen and he was expected to rule the family pile one day but he also didn’t want to lie. Bridget smoothed down the pale blue silk of her dress and regarded him with sad eyes.  
“I suppose that’s the end for us then. I know I’m just a governess and obviously you would want a lady…”  
“NO ! I mean, no I really don’t. I like you, in fact I’m possibly in love with you.”  
Matt reddened and dropped his eyes. His mind was cringing with what he had just said and he pictured Brian and Zacky doubled over with helpless laughter at him being such a soft bastard. Matt was the hard man, the one to keep them in line and here he was, gooey over a girl. This thought was interrupted by her kissing him long and deeply, Matt could do nothing but pull her into his arms and return it, desperate to know that she was feeling this too.  
Bridget stared at him when he broke the kiss, deep blue eyes that he could get lost in and neither spoke for a moment before they noticed that both of the children were staring at them with undisguised curiosity. She laughed, her garbled explanation to them making him smile before she took his hands in hers.  
“I think I might love you too.”  
Matt swept her up off the seat and into his arms, not caring that the other walkers in the park were now staring at this uncomfortable display of public attention. The young governess knew there was a likelihood of her losing her job if this got back to her employer and told him so. Matt merely grinned and pointed towards a large house across the common.  
“If it happens I have a place for you to stay if you don’t mind my friends and the odd explosion.”  
“Seriously ?”  
Bridget’s head was whirling, the last thing she had ever thought was that he would want her in his life permanently. She had been drawn to him though, this tall handsome man who had a dangerous edge to him, he might fit the profile of a gentleman but there was something else underneath. Something much more dangerous and it sang to her. Her father in Ireland had always said that such curiosity would lead to her meeting a bad end one day but Bridget didn’t care if that involved Matt.  
“Yeah, Johnny tends to blow things up and if it isn’t him then it’s the girls experimenting.”  
“You never mentioned girls.”  
Matt smirked, liking how she happily took his arm as they walked the children back towards the edge of the path. She loved him, this lovely Irish girl actually loved him and the thought of her meeting his friends actually now rather excited him. If she could put up with the insanity of his friends then handling his cold and snobby family would be nothing.  
“Claire is Zacky’s….wife I guess you could call it and Lilith is with Brian. They are…witches.”  
“Witches ?”  
“Yes, full on voodoo crafting witches. Now you think I’m crazy.”  
She laughed and nodded, not really believing him but happy to hear him talk about his friends. They parted at the corner, she kissing him properly this time and arranging to meet again in the morning. He was happier than he had been in years, already thinking of how he could introduce her to the gang and even if he could pluck up the courage to ask her to move in. He knew that she might be offended with no offer of marriage on the table but he needed her close to him. All that could come later and he had no doubt that he wanted to spend his life with her, to have children with her.  
His good mood continued across the park again until he reached the front door, unlocking it to a suspicious silence. Normally there was at least one argument happening and or a fight but now he could hear the drawing room clock and it was already giving him goosebumps. Slinging the paper down with his keys he hung his coat up and called up the stairs.  
“Where the fuck is everyone ?”  
“Matt ! Get up here !!”  
There was a sound of mild panic in Claire’s voice that made him take the steps two at a time to the top landing and Zacky’s room. They were all there and he noticed two things straight away. One was that someone had beaten Brian to a pulp and two that Zacky was sitting on the floor in a catatonic state and looking like he had seen something much worse than a ghost. He snarled and stares straight at Lilith, if there was trouble it usually came from that direction.  
“What the hell ?”  
Lilith was holding the blade, twirling it between palm and thumb, seemingly uncaring about the sharp point. She looked pale and strained, seeing the anger in his face and knowing why it was aimed at her. The fight at the club and what she had seen had badly shaken her, to come home and find this made it all the worse. Claire put herself between them and nodded towards Zacky.  
“He’s not well Matt, really not well and he needs a doctor. He had a nightmare and then collapsed convinced he’d taken that knife and killed someone. Except it was locked away upstairs, Lilith had the key the whole night.”  
“Then why is it covered in blood ?”  
Zacky’s voice was dull and scared, Matt decided not to mention the dead woman from the paper. Clearly the last few weeks had been too much of a strain, he should have insisted that Zacky got as far away from London as he could until calm had been restored. He turned towards Brian, his eyebrow raised both at the mess his pal had made of his face and the nonchalant way Brian was dealing with what was going on with his best friend.  
“What happened to you ?”  
“Fighting for money actually but right now we need to worry about this.”  
The bruised man didn’t want to talk about it too much, Lilith was still too scared by what he had done and he was too. They had barely spoke on the way home although she had privately made a note to talk to the old woman downtown to see if what she had seen was possible. Now though they were all more worried about Zacky. She also knew that they were all thinking of what he had done with that blade before. If they knew the full truth then even Claire would want to break her neck.  
“I will take the knife to the old shaman woman to store. It’s buzzing with negative energy and you have become linked with it.”  
Zacky nodded numbly, already everything had slipped into feeling unreal and he wanted to sleep, wanted to be sure that he couldn’t hurt anyone again. A part of his mind was now convinced that there was another dead woman out there. The thought of the police didn’t bother him, the thought of somehow hurting Claire did and painfully badly.  
Lilith dumped the blade into the box and locked it making sure to keep the damn thing out of her mind. Claire and Matt helped Zacky to his feet before the taller man turned his attention to Brian and grabbed his chin, inspecting all the cuts and swelling.  
“You kick the shit out of the guy ?”  
The other man smirked.  
“You know I did and I won over a hundred quid.”  
Lilith rolled her eyes and made for the stairs with the box as Claire chided Brian and Matt slung his arm around Zacky’s shoulder. He looked a little calmer now, believing their explanation after seeing Lilith unlock the strong box. The knife was playing mind games with him surely, nothing more could be happening. He tried to laugh at his earlier thoughts and failed. Matt himself noticed something else, there was someone missing and he hated that, his desire to keep them all safe immediately burning brightly in his head.  
“Where’s Johnny ?”  
“Testing that pulse cannon he’s been working on down at the docks.”  
“Alone ?? Are you people insane ??”  
Brian grinned around the bruising as he wandered down the stairs to answer the ringing front foor bell. He was starting to feel all the pain and possibly broken ribs as the adrenaline wore off and he wondered if Lilith could be convinced to massage it all away and maybe grant him the odd sexual favour. Whether Johnny had lost a limb was not on his list of worries, the gnome had a tendency to survive whatever explosions he caused.  
“Short shit can handle himself.”  
Brian opened the door to a very pretty girl carrying some hand luggage and clearly crying. She looked past him to where Matt was now taking the stairs in three strides to skid to a halt in front of her. All of them shared a look as Matt pulled the sobbing girl into his arms, closing the door behind her before lifting her chin. The girl’s face was wet with tears, her blue eyes swimming as she stared up at the man she loved.  
“I got fired. Can I stay here tonight ?”


	7. Dockside

Johnny twisted a dial or two and squinted down the dry dock towards a target at the far end. He pulled down the goggles from his cap to shield his eyes from the green glow of the cannon and lined up the target. It had cost a fortune to hire this place and he only had it for another week before some steam liner or another needed it back. Just enough time to get this weapon to work and carry out some more tests on the other gadget he had been working on with Matt.  
Seagulls wheeled overhead and the breath of river water that he took made Johnny cough. He would much rather have done this at home but for some reason the others seemed less keen and Brian had been out and out adamant that he was moving out if Johnny even thought about it. There had been sarcastic comments on both sides and Johnny was lucky to escape without a fat lip. Would have been worth it just to see Zacky even the score for him. He was always the one that came out worse in a fight between them but he also knew that both men would kill anyone else that laid a hand on him. Closer than the brothers he had always wanted as a child and never got, Johnny always felt privileged to count them as friends.  
“Are you ready ?”  
Johnny nodded enthusiastically and smiled at the girl who appeared beside him in a flak jacket and sturdy tin helmet. This was his other reason for agreeing to keep his experiments away from the house. He had been quietly dating Alice for a few months, she shared his love of machines and innovation and they had met over one of his many trips to the local museums and libraries for inspiration. He liked knowing that he had someone to himself, that he could just be himself with her rather than keep up with whatever Zacky and Brian were dreaming up.  
“Keep your head down.”  
Alice smiled and planted a quick kiss on his lips before ducking behind a stack of barrels. She had never met anyone quite like Johnny, her family frowned upon such unladylike occupations as physics and mechanics. Her brothers went to university while she was stuck with her boring mother until he had asked to borrow a book with a puppydog smile. Tucking reddish brown hair back up under the helmet, she knew that he was her own private genius.  
An arc of green energy shot from the cannon, the whine making both of them press their hands to their heads. The target disintegrated, taking a considerable portion of the dry dock wall with it. An acrid smell filled the air as the seagulls screamed and flew from the noise and the impossibly bright light. Johnny quickly pressed several buttons, panicking a little as the weapon began to smoke and spark before the noise died down. It worked, it actually fucking worked. He now had something he could show the boys that would stop a vehicle or a train if needed. Maybe even an airship with a little fine tuning.  
“Yes !!”  
“I told you it would work Johnny, you had the calculations right all along.”  
Alice giggled as Johnny swung her around in his arms, the jubilation of something working out right first time was infectious. In truth she had a remarkable mind that tuned directly into his and together the complicated mathematics had been easy. Johnny wondered for the thousandth time if he should tell the others about her, she could bring so much to their team and so much more to his life.  
“Still needs some tuning but now we know it works I can fiddle with it.”  
“What exactly are you going to use it for ?”  
“I’m going to blow shit up with it.”  
His grin was huge, making him look younger and less severe than the smart suit suggested. He pushed the goggles back onto his forehead and jammed a screwdriver into the top of the machine as Alice picked up the various pipes and diodes that littered the floor around them. They worked in a companionable silence for a while until a voice behind them caused them both to jump.  
“Aren’t you going to introduce us Johnny ?”  
He turned and glared at Lilith who was wearing a friendly smile. She held a metal lockbox and was still dressed in black, he wondered again if Brian wasn’t the only one who had visited the grave at least once, Lilith projected an almost wraith like beauty at times. Alice wasn’t sure quite what to make of the pale woman and noticed that she was being watched with undisguised curiosity.  
“Lilith, this is Alice. Alice, this is Lilith. She’s my least favourite housemate and co-worker.”  
“How rude. Are you his girlfriend ? Please say yes because certain people have been having doubts.”  
The wicked grin made Alice relax a little and she now realised that Lilith was not alone. Another woman smiled at her, this one a redhead with her arm around an attractive man with dark hair and a warm smile. Another man was behind him, bruised up but undeniably handsome with razor sharp cheekbones, he smiled too but looked her up and down. The last man actually shook her hand and introduced himself and his friends. It seemed that even Johnny had not met Bridget and there was a flurry of chat before Brian prodded at a button on the machine.  
“Does it work ? Last one blew up the chimney about eight foot into the air.”  
“Don’t fucking touch it !”  
“Yes, I’m his girlfriend.”  
Johnny batted his hand away and Brian laughed, winking at Alice before affectionately hugging the shorter man. All of them seemed mildly impressed, happy to hide behind the barrels with their fingers in their ears to see a repeat performance. Again the weapon took a chunk out of the wall and Matt clapped Johnny on the back, more than a little impressed. Bridget took it all in, amazed by how her life had changed in an afternoon and somehow seeing an ally in Alice who seemed equally overwhelmed by the men in their lives and their unusual friends. Both women had noted that Lilith’s hat consisted of a pair of dead crows.  
“Can we shrink it down to hand size ?”  
Matt considered the possibilities of having the weapon in his pocket and just what that would mean to expanding his business. Johnny always gave them the edge over other investigative companies, his assorted steam driven miracles had never been beaten.  
“Maybe, calculations will be a bitch.”  
Alice looked expectantly at them both and noted that Johnny was already smiling and pulling her towards him.  
“But with help I can do this. We have wanted to grow the team for a while.”  
Matt nodded and glanced over to where he could see the others waiting for his reply. Both the witches were smiling, somehow pleased that the guys had found a happiness that didn’t involve work or their own hands. Brian and Zacky were amused, endless opportunities had now opened up for additional fun at the bosses expense and another rod to poke the gnome with.  
“Looks like we have two new members then. If you both want in.”  
Bridget flung herself at Matt with an enthusiastic kiss that he took as yes while Johnny explained to his girl exactly what the job was about and that they worked with two witches. Of course the science and logic was against it but Alice was nonetheless intrigued and what a chance to have an actual job that meant something. Being near her genius all the time was just the icing on the cake. The four of them talked more as Lilith turned back and climbed the ladder back up to the edge of the dock.  
“I had a thought.”  
She could feel the knife humming through the box and fighting against the containment spell that Claire had used to stop the vibrations leaking from the metal container. They had decided to bury it in consecrated ground but the expanse of river before them led directly out to sea. Claire and Zacky joined her on the edge of the dockside as Brian slipped his arms around her waist, his chin resting on her shoulder.  
“Sea water would do just as well as dirt.”  
“Would it get the damn thing out of my head ?”  
Zacky looked at Claire, pleased to see that she nodded before pulling him a little closer. His collapse had scared her, the thought that he might actually have killed a woman scared them both more especially after they had seen Matt’s paper and the report of the murder. Brian had declared it ridiculous, he had seen them disappear to bed that night and there was no way in hell Zacky would have got out the door when he had Claire to keep him busy. He had been drily reminded by his friend that sex wasn’t everything but the spells had removed the sick feeling from his head and this seemed like an ideal solution.  
“Salt water is ideal. Not much can be used to recall an object from that.”  
Lilith nodded in agreement, sensing the waves of anger that the object was giving out.  
“Who can throw farthest ?”  
“Me normally but the cracked ribs aren’t really up to it.”  
Lilith landed an elbow against them to test the theory which resulted in a shove from Brian that nearly sent both of them over into the water. Zacky grabbed his best friend by the arm and glared at them both before removing the box from Lilith’s hands. His skin crawled at touching it, aware that Johnny and Matt had joined them, the new members of the team eager to find out just what was going on here. With a glance at Claire he pulled his arm back and heaved, the box flying into the air and far out into the estuary.  
The box landed with a heavy splash and disappeared below the greenish water. Zacky looked relieved, finally he could get back to work properly and start sleeping without being scared of where his dreams would take him. Brian grabbed him in an affectionate hug and they all paused to watch the river traffic go by. The light of the afternoon was starting to fade, all of them were hungry and tired and yet it felt like the beginning of a new chapter. Something that would lead them to better places and an escape from the horror of the recent past. New love and new directions that all of them wanted to hope would not include more death.  
“We should go out and celebrate. I reckon a good meal down The Dog and Duck.”  
Matt grinned, pulling Bridget a little closer to him as Lilith and Claire started to grill the girls about exactly where they had met Messrs Sanders and Seward. There was an instant camaraderie between the women and Johnny realised that they were about to have a very embarrassing conversation. He quickly gathered Matt and Zacky into a technical discussion on the new weapon and its possible uses as they headed back towards the dock gates which would lead to the city and some entertainment.  
“We should advertise more. Get some professional ads in The Times.”  
Matt looked more enthusiastic about that than the others, Zacky giggling and punching his arm.  
“Are we going legit now ?”  
“We’ve always been legit.”  
“Tell that to the man that Claire turned into a toad.”  
Claire shook her head, not wanting Bridget and Alice to get the wrong idea.  
“It was a frog not a toad and he was fine, scared him into a confession didn’t it ?”  
Lilith smirked, taking the other two women by the arm and leaning in conspiratorially.  
“Only after a cat nearly ate the bloke. He was fucking shitting himself by the time the spell wore off.”  
There was laughter and neither of them were sure whether Claire and Lilith were joking or serious. Somehow it seemed a fitting end to a confusing day.  
Only Brian hung back, staying staring out into the river. His face had lost its colour, the bruises now standing stark out against his skin. He couldn’t move to follow, breaking into a smile as he stared at the point where the box had disappeared. Ripples and bubbles marked the spot, the sky seeming to darken above them.   
“Brian ? Did you lose your keys in the river ?”  
“Shut it bitch.”  
Lilith grinned and kept walking. She didn’t see him turn to follow, his eyes now flat and black as he looked at the people in front of him. The water continued to broil and rise in steam as he walked away, the skies turning a deep dark red. He hummed a lullaby under his breath and considered which would be the first to die.


	8. Flight

Lilith sat on the ledge of the roof and pointed out the maze of alleys below, her skirts hitched up so that her booted feet dangled over the edge.  
“So, this is the plan.”  
Claire continued drawing a salt circle on the flat brick behind where Bridget and Alice were leaning over with her sister. The runes and stones needed for the location spell were in the bag next to her and neither of them needed a book to remember this spell. She was content to let Lilith handle the explanations, happy that Zacky was fully recovered and somewhere down below with Brian ready to flush their quarry out.  
“We know the target is somewhere in this city district. We find him and Claire can spook him enough to put him out onto the street. We let the boys know where and then they close in and drive him towards us. More than likely Zacky and Matt will handle the takedown, usually Brian handles it if there is anyone with the target and Johnny makes sure they don’t think of pulling a weapon.”  
“Isn’t that dangerous ?”  
Bridget looked a little concerned. Matt had brushed off the idea that he could get hurt but Zacky had been more honest. They had all taken bumps and bruises in the course of their work and there was always the possibility of more. None of them would talk about what had happened to Brian, there seemed to be a hush over the incident, just that he had been badly hurt while taking one too many risks. Bridget loved her new life, their tender courtship taken to a whole new level now she shared his home and his bed. Marriage had ceased to matter to her, all she wanted was him to herself for the rest of her days.  
“Not with this guy, he just ran off with some money.”  
Alice leaned a little further over trying to see if Johnny was anywhere in sight, she carried one of their newest inventions and was keen to give it a try. She still wasn’t sure if this whole witchcraft thing was on the level but both she and Bridget were excited at their first time out with the gang. The last few days had been a quick lesson in business and in pleasure. Both seemed to be mixed fairly frequently, a close bond that they were soon drawn into.  
“It’s ready.”  
Claire smiled and drew the symbols inside the circle with the athame as the others came back from the edge. Lilith picked up the chalice and closed her eyes, letting everything flow through and past her as Claire started the charm. A roughly drawn map of the street below in sand marked the centre of the circle and Lilith poured a little of the blessed water in the centre before setting the chalice down.  
“Join hands, don’t break the circle and remember to breathe. It’s always a little intoxicating the first time.”  
Bridget and Alice exchanged a glance before joining hands with Lilith and Claire around the map. The air seemed heavy, the stars above growing a little brighter even through the smog of central London. Claire continued the words, ancient English that had existed before the dawn of Stonehenge and beyond. Lilith loved this part, the slow arc of power growing in the circle and shifting the sand slightly until a pinprick of green light grew in one corner. To channel the universe was a gift that so few had and she enjoyed letting that energy flow through her mind.  
Alice’s eyes widened, there was no doubting that this hovering spark had not been there before, Claire’s words growing louder as the air in between them started to shimmer and sparkle. Lilith knew that it would be Bridget that would seek this path, she could always tell when someone had a gift for the art and it would just need a little push in the right direction. She winked at them both and whispered.  
“It’s fine. Be ready.”  
Claire smiled, she loved these charms and was the stronger spellcaster of the two although Lilith was her equal in other ways. There had never been any competition between them, their natural divergence in skills complimented each other. She would charm you, Lilith would physically hold you. The little green light moved and finally sparked and settled over a street.  
“Old Wandsworth Road, a pub called The Crown.”  
Alice jumped as Bridget gazed in wonder. The words had not been spoken, both girls clearly heard them in their heads and now understood what Lilith had meant by letting the boys know. Lilith took over, letting Claire go to the edge of the roof as she closed down the charm and the circle. She herself hadn’t heard her sister in her head, one of the few that could shut that down if needed and Claire had taught her the skill to some degree.  
“Now we spook him.”  
Bridget joined her as Alice continued to watch Lilith extinguishing the candles with a look from three feet. Her logical mind had been forced to believe, Bridget just wanted to know how Claire would now draw the man out. After hearing words that were not spoken she wondered just how powerful Claire might be and if the other one was equally as powerful.  
“How do you mean ?”  
“I can lock onto him, hear him if I concentrate. Matt showed me a photograph which helps. Then I can make him see everyone around him in that bar as rotting corpses….or skeletons…or whatever I want. He will rush out of there and then it’s up to the boys. Do you want to see ?”  
Bridget shook her head, not wanting to imagine that right now as the other two women joined them again. Lilith was looking at a map that Alice had brought with them and they could see that their quarry was less than two miles away. It should be simple for the guys to drive them this way and she had already heard Zack’s soft voice in her head telling her they were in position.  
“Shame they aren’t closer or you’d hear the screams.”  
Lilith smirked and waited, it was usually the hardest part as they would not know how things were going until one of them appeared in view. Brian was the fastest, a trait which usually led to trouble if the target wasn’t going solo. He could easily get swept up in the fight and forget the target which was why Matt and Zacky handled the takedown. Long minutes seemed to pass before Claire pointed and smiled.  
“Here they come.”  
A man was running blindly down the main street towards them. He was young and in good shape, dodging around other people as Brian closed in. In a straight chase it would have been close but two streets converged into the main one just up ahead and Zacky and Matt were already closing fast. Alice caught a glimpse of Johnny stepping into view just below them and training one of the rifles onto the man in the distance. It was the perfect ambush, the milling people below not even realising what was going on in the midst of them.  
The man was frightened, both by the vision in his head and the strong fast stranger closing in behind him. He had thought the crime would have no consequence, the money was already long gone on overdue rent and a gambling habit. He didn’t know if he was more scared of being half killed by his employer or the man behind him. This all combined to mean that he never saw it coming when Zacky hit him at full speed from the left side and slammed him into the pavement.  
Matt appeared at the same moment, a hefty kick winding the man as Brian skidded to a halt and turned his gaze on the bystanders who strangely now decided that they all had other places to be. Matt let Zacky land a couple more punches before they pulled the hapless thief to his feet. Any further thoughts of flight were extinguished by a barrel pointed at his head from a determined looking Johnny.  
“You’ve been a bad, bad boy…..”  
Matt’s height loomed over the man, now held between Zacky and Brian. Bridget loved this new intimidating side to her man, interested to see how this would play out from the safety of the ledge above. Lilith was sitting on the very edge, booted feet swinging in the air from three stories up, her eyes fixed on Brian.  
“Please, I’ll pay you. Just don’t take me back to Mr Brown.”  
“Too late. We know the money is gone and Mr Brown doesn’t want to get the police involved.”  
Matt smiled pleasantly as Brian and Zacky shook the man hard until his teeth seemed to rattle in his head.  
“He’ll kill me !”  
The words were a frightened squeak and soon cut off as Johnny departed to leave a message for their employer with his contact. It had all been prearranged, the boss man would get the thief from them and hand over a considerable sum of money. What happened to the man afterwards was not their concern. It was doubtful if there would be any form of happy ending.   
The girls gathered up the last of the equipment from the rooftop and clambered back down the ladder to the street below. Climbing required some skill in long skirts so they were all hitched up to varying degrees and Lilith had opted out altogether, her skirt ended at the knees much to Brian’s delight, her shapely legs inside striped stockings hit him straight in the groin. The effective prisoner was not sure where to look as they arrived alongside their partners to see the end of the evening’s activities.  
“Still unsure about magic ?”  
Zacky smiled as Alice shrugged, unsure was still the word. Certainly something had happened up there and it intrigued her but she still wasn’t convinced that it was supernatural in nature. Bridget squeezed Matt’s hand, relieved he was safe and impressed by the casual skill it had taken to pull this off. People watched from the shadows, shrinking back as Lilith sent a wave of malevolent energy towards them. They would be scared and not know why, Brian felt suddenly hungry for her, his eyes following as she settled back into the shadows by the wall. Claire kept watch on the roads heading into the square for Johnny to return and within twenty minutes they had been paid and were on their way home.  
“What will happen to him do you think ?”  
“He’s a dead man Johnny, you don’t mess with Italian oil merchants.”  
Brian grinned, sweeping his arm around Lilith and watching carefully as Claire and Zacky walked in front of them. Indeed, the night was still so young…..


	9. Syn

Lilith sat in front of the mirror and pulled the ribbon from her braid, shaking and loosening her hair until it hung down her back in a single curling wave. It was a nuisance to pin it back but Brian adored it too much to let her cut it and she could see that he was watching her now from the bed as she took the brush to the curls and tried to tame it into some kind of order. Damn him and those cheekbones that made it virtually impossible to resist him when he wanted something.  
He loved watching her, the candles throwing soft shadows onto her skin as she prepared to join him. Somehow it was his favourite part of the day when he could forget whatever annoyances from the working hours and just relax into a calm peace that both of them found hard to obtain. She had discarded the habitual black dress and looked almost innocent to him in the pale corset and white silk stockings. Not that his woman had ever really been innocent but it was the closest she got and it turned him on, the frail looking girl that was anything but.  
“A hand here ?”  
She smiled at him in the mirror, watching as he climbed from the bed and extended his hand to her. Lilith turned and met his eye, accepting his assistance to rise before turning away so that he could reach the laces of the corset. Brian did this for her every night, his deft fingers managing the intricate knots that were out of her reach. His touch was light, merely ghosting against her skin although she could feel his body heat against her back. His shirt was long gone, it was warm as their room as near the top of the house but rain against the window held the promise of bad weather.  
“Good job I didn’t stay dead or you would have been unpicking these damn things yourself.”  
Lilith giggled, his kiss against her neck told her exactly what he had in mind. Brian finally reached the bottom and discarded the corset onto the floor.  
“I knew there was a reason, really can’t think of another one.”  
“Really ?”  
His hands snaked around and pulled her more firmly against him, body heat now enflamed by his fingers stroking gently over her breasts and nipples. Lilith knew she was leaning back against him, the triumphant chuckle in her ear telling her that he believed he had won this particular battle. Indeed it felt too good, he knew exactly how much pressure to use and exactly where to touch her to reduce her to a moaning mess in his arms and applied it now, his hands cupping her as he twisted her nipples.  
“Ok, so you do have some uses.”  
Now he did laugh, pulling her around by the wrists so that their lips could meet in a heated kiss that seemed to pull the air from the room. Brian hadn’t been able to fully replace the chill from the grave whenever she wasn’t in his arms and it made him want her more. His memories of the beyond had come back in the form of shadows and cold, not exactly fear but something worse. Lilith had saved him from that and he knew that it could have been eternal.  
They tumbled onto the bed, the cool breeze and damp air from the window were enough to make stripping clothes away from warm skin raise goosebumps. Another excuse for littered kisses, Brian closing his eyes as she pushed him back into the sheets and held him there. Her hair tickled his chest and stomach as Lilith kissed every muscle and scar until it was his turn to moan and catch his breath. She teased, never drifting further down than his hip although he bucked underneath her and he wondered if she wanted him to beg.  
Lilith smiled, the quiet desperation in his eyes was something of an aphrodisiac and although she was desperate to touch him, to taste his length and enjoy it there was no way that she would give in just yet. Brian growled as her teeth fastened around his nipple instead and tugged enough to raise a little pain. He wound his hand in her hair and pulled her up so that he could kiss her harder and feel her body now pressed against his. Still she wouldn’t give him what he wanted, the softness of her inner thigh pressed against his erection. He broke the kiss to smile at her, slightly breathless but his eyes shining in the candle light.  
“You’re really going to make me beg ?”  
“Yes I really think I am.”  
Lilith kissed his smile and waited to hear if he would really beg her to ride him now or simply take what he wanted. Either would be fun but she didn’t think he was in a submissive mood which was proven true when he simply exerted enough strength to break her grip and flip them so that she landed on her back with a soft thud and stared up at him. Her dark hair was a halo against the white pillow, her eyes glowing with desire for the intense man who was now using his knee to part her legs. Brian took in every curve of her body, his eyes lingering on her pussy.  
“Beg Lilith, beg me now or I’m going to go find Zacky…”  
His smirk was infuriating enough for her to laugh out loud and Brian knew that was probably as close as he was going to get to hearing her say those words. It was his turn to tease, his fingers probing her wetness until her body was begging for him even if her lips would not. They were both breathing hard, wanting to prolong the game but not when it was becoming so painful to keep their bodies from coming together in the most complete of ways. Brian added another finger, her body clamping down as he teased her mercilessly.  
“Please….”  
The single word echoed in his head, a little trick borrowed from her sister and she stopped fighting him, Brian’s hands wrapping both of her legs over his hips as he pushed inside her. Neither wanted to look away and he pulled her arms above her head to make sure that they could get no closer together, his chest cushioned against hers as she grasped his hands. The pace was languid at first, the sensation too deep to be rushed and the desire to simply enjoy it overcame any desire to continue the power game.   
Lilith could feel nothing but his body and the soft cold air blowing in from the window. His lips seemed to be everywhere, over her neck and shoulder blade before returning to kiss her deeply as their bodies moved together a little faster and his thrusts became harder. She could feel the growing blush of her skin as even the tips of her fingers tingled with the pleasure now building in her stomach. Still he would not let her free, determined to control the pace and timing.   
Brian fought to keep that control, it was hard not to let go completely and use her and this perfect body that seemed made for him. He was panting hard, waiting until she cried out violently before letting himself take his own need into consideration. Her hips arched up, every cell in her seeming to grip him tighter until the orgasm shook his body and his head finally fell into the crook of her neck. Both relaxed, the only sound in the room was them breathing and the distant rumble of thunder as the storm finally rolled in.  
It was hard to fight off the urge to sleep and finally Lilith wriggled her fingers a little, wondering why he was still intent in keeping her pinned underneath him with his head buried into her neck. Another round would be fun but Lilith fully intended to get a little rest first. His contented sigh told her that he had the same thought and a wry smile crossed her lips.  
“Bri, can you at least let me scratch my nose ? Or do it for me.”  
He chuckled and raised his head to look at her, the smile on her face becoming frozen at the blank stare that now twisted his face. Still her Brian, the handsome devil may care smirk the same but his eyes dead black orbs.  
“I would but we have some things we need to discuss.”  
Lilith swallowed nervously and tried to push him away. A normal man would have been flung across the room but he just kept smiling, the pressure on her arms not letting up an inch. Clearly what she had seen the week before had been no trick of the light or accident of her own minds making. He had returned to her yes but not quite the same man.  
“Like who exactly YOU might be.”  
“I’m Brian of course, just new and improved. Don’t you like it ? Come on Lilith, don’t tell me you didn’t think of this when you pulled me back here. Did you think it would be all loving hearts and smiles ?”  
Lilith snarled at the mocking tone and struggled in earnest, managing to push him away from her. She pulled the sheet from under them and wrapped it around her body, her eyes never leaving his before a slow smile crossed her face.  
“Of course I thought of it. What I didn’t consider was that you would be stupid enough to start trying to frame your best friend for slicing up whores in Whitechapel. So fucking subtle as usual.”  
The boy shook his head, his eyes returning to normal as he caught the triumphant grin on her face.  
“Fuck, how did you guess ?”  
“The knife you idiot. The only person who knew what that thing could do to a mortal mind was you. Plus you’re the only one to have your hand down my bra on a regular basis. So you going to tell me why ?”  
He lay back against the bed, pondering the question and remembering the whore struggling under his grip. It was fun and he wanted to go out and do it again. There were no more moral qualms, no more doubt in his head. He had become more than a man and now he knew that she had done this for him out of love and desire.  
“Zacky should be with us. He’s like us if he would just give the damn morals up. I take it the deal for my soul didn’t involve your sister.”  
“No, I thought we would have more entertainment if only you and I knew what new talents you have. I take it you’ve tried them out. You’re so…..different. Quicker. More…sinister.”  
Brian scooped her back into his arms and discarded the sheet so that she was again naked against him, marvelling at the rush of energy that hit his skin. They would be gods, they would bring Zacky over to their way of thinking and then the others too. What good was a world of morals and rules when he now had so much power and they could take everything they ever wanted and more. Lilith leaned against his chest, black magic worked so much better than white when it came to taking exactly what you wanted.  
“My own private Syn, returned from the inferno. What fun we shall have.”


	10. Double Event

“So Zacky says to the priest if that’s what it did to the verger just think what the nun is in for.”  
The bar dissolved into laughter as Matt wiggled his little finger and gestured to where his friend was now shaking his head with a rueful smile. Claire had taken the girls down to see Old Peg and some other places of interest as soon as Brian and Lilith had disappeared back towards home. It had left Matt, Zacky and Johnny to sneak off to their local for the lock in. They were all slightly drunk now, Johnny still sinking shots at a three to one ratio compared to his friends despite the fact it was nearly one in the morning. It was sorely needed, the girls tended to stop them from seriously drinking given the amount of explosives in the house.  
It had been an eventful three weeks and now they were getting ready to bid Matt and Bridget farewell so they could head north. Matt didn’t know how long it would take but he hoped to be back in London by the end of October and intended to break it to his parents that he was getting married and staying in the capital permanently. If Bridget said yes of course. They had won several lucrative contracts that Zacky had set up to begin while he was away, Brian had heard of a possible larger investigation for when he returned. All in all things were going well.  
“You are actually going to ask her or just get your pa to bellow it over lunch ?”  
Matt punched Johnny on the arm.  
“Just because you lot don’t believe in making honest women of our lady friends, I do.”  
“So fucking do it already.”  
Zacky put down a tray piled with more shots and beer before looking earnestly at his friends worried expression. Matt might be self confidant in the extreme in most situations but this was most certainly different. He pictured Lilith and Brian in front of a priest and then shook his head, too weird. Handing Matt a pint, he sat down and smiled.  
“She will say yes. Bridget is just waiting for you to ask. You guys do it and then the midget can ask Alice.”  
Johnny choked on his whiskey and shrugged.  
“Don’t wish that on her or me. You ain’t met her father, it would mean getting Lilith to hex him with some serious voodoo shit.”  
“It’s your father we would need to put a curse on so he could perform the ceremony.”  
They sat drinking in companionable silence, all of them a little puzzled at Brian not joining them for the lock in. It probably meant there was some kind of disgusting and bizarre orgy going on all over the house and none of them really wanted to walk in on that again. Claire was unlikely to be home by morning, she had found that Bridget had the interest and talent to maybe learn the craft while Alice had found some new uses for some of the standard witching ingredients. Johnny had even used the concoction to make grenades which proved lethal.  
“Just make sure you keep an eye on Brian, he’s been taking some bad risks lately and I don’t want to come back to another corpse.”  
Zacky nodded, they had all noticed it. His best friend had always had a temper and been reckless but now it was like he had no fear. There had been a chase over rooftops that had nearly ended in disaster when Brian managed to crest two buildings and Zacky had followed only to find himself hanging on by his fingernails above a four storey drop. Brian had been amused, the others less so.  
“Maybe that’s what being dead does, takes away common sense. He had fuck all to begin with.”  
Matt grinned and toasted them both as they became aware of someone hammering on the door to the pub. Everyone fell silent, the place was supposed to close at eleven and only a few were allowed into these illegal drinking hours after that. If this was a raid then it could mean the night in jail. The thought of being bailed out by Brian was not worth thinking about….  
“Who is it ?”  
The publican brandished a bat as he yelled through the locked door, waiting to see just who would be knocking at one in the morning. It was a rough neighbourhood and only getting rougher despite his best efforts to run a clean house and serve at reasonable prices.  
“It’s Lemmy, some woman’s been found in Dutfield’s Yard, they reckon it’s Jack the Ripper.”  
The man unlocked the door as Matt looked at his friends with interest. All of them had seen the letter published after the last two murders, he was inclined to think it was an enthusiastic news man rather than the real killer but they had all been interested. More so as the second killing had been the one that Zack had been terrified that he had committed.  
“Calm down lad, are the coppers there ?”  
The teenager nodded enthusiastically and bolted as a buzz of conversation picked up among the men at the bar. Zacky drained the last of his whiskey, pleased to have something warm inside him to banish the lingering memories. He prayed that blade had washed out to sea as the girls had said it would. At least this time there was no doubt in his mind that he had not committed another atrocity.  
“Shall we go take a look ?”  
“Fuck it, why not ?”  
Matt’s professional interest was piqued by the case and the other two took little persuading, pulling their coat collars up as they hustled along the foggy streets towards the crime scene. The local police were a shabby bunch at best although the gang had done some work for the DCI’s on the side. Zacky wondered if Aberline even had a damn clue. Johnny brought up the rear, his hand wrapped firmly around the gun in his pocket. Whatever man was doing this was clearly in the realms of the psychopath.  
“Hey, you lot. Keep back !”  
The advantage of height meant that Matt could get a view of the broken woman over the bullish copper’s shoulder. He immediately guessed that it didn’t fit the killers normal MO, there was not enough blood or mutilation. The shorter man noticed that there seemed to be a lot of confusion among the law and the hustling pressmen down an alley across the way and wondered if they could get a look.  
“You think it’s him ?”  
Zacky shrugged and looked back down the alley.  
“If he was interrupted maybe. Can you feel that though ?”  
Matt paused, Zacky had gone pale and now he could feel it too. A low smell of ozone, like there had been a thunderstorm just recently and the air was starting to clear. It was familiar but he couldn’t put his finger on it and he suddenly wished the girls were here.  
“Energy of some kind. Like when Claire or Lilith have been casting.”  
They both looked at Johnny, it was exactly that and yet now it was fading so fast they couldn’t be sure they had felt it at all. It was puzzling and curious, all of them a little disturbed as they turned to start the journey back home. There wasn’t really much to see now that the police had arrived in earnest and the only link to The Ripper seemed to be that the dead woman looked like a prostitute.   
“If we get a chance we should come back and see if the girls can feel it.”  
Matt grinned, he had the overwhelming desire to investigate the case just to solve it first and piss of the police. There was no doubt that his profession was looked down on by them but they weren’t above buying favours when their own methods could not bring a confession.  
“What’s one more dead whore as Brian would say.”  
“You’re a sick fuck Zacky.”  
The sweet smile stretched into a laugh and they walked a little faster until they realised that police and press were now running past them, the few men shouting over the din. All of them seemed to be heading towards the City boundary and Mitre Square. It was fairly close by and yet an entirely different district. Johnny tripped one of the urchins into Zacky’s path and his friend hauled the struggling boy up. The kid was no more than twelve and ragged, a slum child.  
“What’s the rush ?”  
“He’s done another one, ripped this one apart really good. Blood and body bits everywhere.”  
Zacky let go, slightly disturbed by the ghoulish delight on the young face and the boy sprinted away into the gloom. He had been right, the killer must have been disturbed and not satisfied by merely slitting the first woman’s throat. He started jogging to keep up with Johnny and Matt as they followed the child along and into the square.  
Matt kept back this time, he could see that the police force from the City were now arguing with their counterparts from the district of the first murder and that Aberline had arrived to look at the dessicated woman sprawled on the cobbles. None of them needed to get any closer to see entrails and blood shining in the moonlight, this one clearly was the work of the same man who had been stalking the streets since August.  
“Zack, it’s here again and stronger.”  
Johnny sniffed, indeed the ozone smell was stronger in the air and it seemed still. Surely there was a connection now and he thought back to the blade in the bay. Matt had gone forward, he knew the DI quite well and had decided to see if they could maybe help in some way. None of the police had been able to even start to find a motive, the possible mystical element made it an even more attractive prospect.  
“It’s not right I can see that. We should have dragged Lilith out here.”  
“We can in the morning if we can still get close.”  
Zacky watched his friend deep in conversation with the DI, an argument half breaking out before it was interrupted by the continuing argument between the two police forces. Matt returned toward them, a victorious expression on his face that both men knew meant he had managed to wangle them into the investigation. They turned and joined him as Matt continued walking, there would be nothing more they could do tonight without the rest of their team.  
“They have nothing, they will pay us to snoop around our contacts and lend any assistance. What we don’t get is access to their work or the bodies although the bloke down the morgue owes a certain witch of our acquaintance a favour.”  
Johnny stuffed his hands in his pockets.  
“Thought you were going home.”  
Matt shook his head with a grim smile.  
“And miss out on this ? Not a chance.”


	11. The Magic Shop

The old shop was hidden down a side street far from the view of passing pedestrians and traffic. It kept irregular hours, somehow always open when needed but otherwise unnoticed. It was tiny and dark, the shelves stacked with books and bottles, vials and specific requirements that those less connected to the physical plain might need.  
“Just pick out the one that feels right to you. It’s a personal thing and you will know which one when you see it.”  
Claire smiled, leaving Bridget to pick a book of shadows to begin her training. This was always an important step and she could picture her own, the small book bound in moleskin that was now tattered and bursting with spells and enchantments. Sacred and irreplaceable. Lilith too had packed hers with charms and spells over the years and it took her back to their childhood in the orphanage. Claire felt at home here far more than she ever had in that place and enjoyed these random chats that Old Peg managed to use to impart wisdom that dated back to the burning times and further.  
She looked over at the old woman now and wondered just how old she was. Old Peg could be ninety or nine hundred and no-one would know, the bent and wizened form hid surprising energy and she was now enthusiastically discussing the uses for goat sperm with a slightly befuddled Alice. Hadn’t quite been what she had asked for but the crone seemed surprisingly knowledgeable about the experiments she had been doing with Johnny.  
“Full of energy, you’re not going to want it burning a hole in your eyeball.”  
Alice blanched and tried to step back a little.  
“I….I’m sure it will do just fine !”  
The old woman chuckled throatily and motioned to Claire. Clearly there was something that the powerful witch needed to discuss and Claire knew exactly what it was. They had not been back since the clearing spell after they had revived Brian and she knew that Old Peg was anxious to know if all was well. There was no more potent magic than what they had done and there would be many who would be uncomfortable about it. With a smile she made her way over to the area behind the counter where Peg was now pouring sweet tea.  
“Pretty Claire, I’ve been wondering when you’d come back in to see me.”  
Claire smiled and accepted the cup, settling comfortably into the chair beside the old woman.  
“There was nowhere else I would come to get Bridget started, what do you think ?”  
“Talent there to be sure, with the right training she could be powerful. Don’t let her near the other one.”  
Claire knew who Peg was talking about. They had discussed before that Lilith walked too closely to the line that shouldn’t be crossed. She had never doubted her best friend had stayed on the right side for very many years until the night Brian died. Lilith had been desolate and filled with rage, taking all of the boys to hold her down from burning the city to the ground to find the man that had done it. Only getting her lover back had pulled Lilith from the brink.  
“Things are much calmer now. We put things right and Lilith is back to normal.”  
There was a pause and Claire looked into a long stare from unfathomable eyes.  
“He came back right did he ?”  
“Brian is fine. I know it was a risk with it working but we have him home.”  
The old woman shrugged, stirring her tea before regarding Claire again. Any sign of infirmity or age was gone and she was reminded that there was no more powerful witch in England than the one she was sat with. Their kind from all over the world consulted here and the shop itself rested on ley lines older than the city. It had stood through the bad times and the good, even this century still believing the Christian viewpoint of witchcraft rather than the truth.  
“That’s not what I meant. I told Lilith there was a risk he wouldn’t come back as he was before. That spell is dark magic, it can bring a demon back with the dead one and bind them. The chances of it restoring an unblemished soul are small. The act of murder if requires sees to that.”  
Claire frowned, wondering why Lilith had neglected to mention this small fact.  
“We had to get rid of the blade, it was making Zacky see things.”  
“That was something channelling the blade, not the thing itself. An object is a vessel to the person using it. It was in his head because of what he used it for, that opened the way but anything else after that was someone playing with his mind or his own conscience.”  
Claire shivered, aware now that both Bridget and Alice were standing at the counter and staring at her. There would have to be explanations and she wasn’t sure that either was ready for that. The consequences of what they had done were rippling out now and she wasn’t sure that it would be the people directly responsible that would share the fallout. It bothered her intently that Lilith had kept such a serious secret.  
“Brian is fine though. He is the same cocky fun loving and arrogant git he was before.”  
“And Lilith ?”  
“Lilith is just….Lilith. As long as she has him then there is nothing wrong.”  
Peg looked at her and Claire felt something cold pass through her making her think that somehow she was missing something important. They sat in silence and continued drinking the warm tea and both digesting the world around them. Most people lived in ignorance of the ebb and flow of the corporeal and ethereal worlds, unless trained to feel it. Claire had never listened so hard and yet she could feel nothing different.  
“Maybe all is well then Claire, just be watchful and send that sister of yours to see me. I want to be able to look at her for myself and see that all is well.”  
Claire smiled and touched the old woman’s hand, needing to know that she had somewhere to come if things went wrong. Peg smiled back and patted her hand before accepting payment for their purchases and bidding the girls goodnight. Dawn was blushing the skyline as they set out on the long walk for home, an uncomfortable silence falling between them as the only sounds were their feet striking the cobbles.  
Bridget had overheard enough to know that whatever had happened to Brian had required magic to fix and now seemed to be bothering Claire, Alice had realised early that Johnny was hiding something from her and now wanted some answers. She grabbed Claire’s arm and pulled her around, a determined look on her face that shone in the half light.  
“The truth would be good right now. What happened to Brian ?”  
Claire smiled sadly and hesitated.  
“He died. He took a risk that backfired and he died. We brought him back from the dead.”  
“That’s impossible.”  
Alice shook her head, she had come around to magic as being an extension of the scientific world but this was ridiculous. Bridget stood silently, she could tell that Claire was being truthful and it scared her, more so that Matt hadn’t shared this with her before now. What other secrets might these people be hiding ?  
“Yes, I know you think that but you can ask Johnny and Matt and Zacky. Hell, ask Brian himself and he will tell you. It was dark magic and it required we do things that we probably shouldn’t but we needed him and it wasn’t his time.”  
She started to walk again, aware that the moral dilemma didn’t seem quite so clear cut when it was put to people that didn’t know him like she did, that hadn’t seen Lilith in pieces on the floor at the thought of never seeing him again.  
“So in doing that you have opened up something.”  
Claire shrugged as the other two girls caught up.  
“Not that I can tell but Peg is concerned and I need to talk to Lilith.”  
Bridget was still thinking about Matt but Alice had made the correlation to the box that had been thrown in the river and now wondered just what it had been used for. Johnny was one thing, a genius that she loved and she had come to love his friends but this was something entirely different. The walk through the city continued, Claire reaching out to Zacky with her mind and asking where her friends were. He had sounded sleepy, assuring her that Lilith and Brian had been home when they had returned and as far as he knew, still were. All was well but he could tell that she was worried and now promised to wait for her.  
They were all exhausted by the time the house came into view, Claire had managed to talk the girls into discussing the whole thing with the boys until they had slept and a rational conversation would be more likely. It was a shock, the thought that resurrection was even possible was enough for most people to cope with and they had been through many confusing changes since joining the coven in the park.  
“Zack ?”  
He looked up from the book he was reading from the fire, his eyes full of sleep and anxiety. He was starting to feel the effects of the night’s alcohol and excitement. They had stayed up to discuss the new case with Brian and Lilith when they had returned home, formulating the beginning of a plan to handle the case that was gripping London. Seeing the worry in Claire’s face it now became the last thing he wished to discuss. He bid Bridget and Alice good night and then pulled his girl into his arms.  
“What happened ?”  
Claire rested her head against his, the calm feeling of his arms always helped to sooth her and Zacky gently held her close as the fire warmed them both. It was peaceful, a world away from the death and chaos he had seen earlier in the night and it made him love her even more.  
“Peg said the spell was more dangerous than we thought. It could have brought Brian back wrong, with a demon attached even. She told Lilith but Lilith didn’t tell me.”  
The hurt in her voice was palpable.  
“Lilith wouldn’t have cared, she just wanted Brian back and it worked didn’t it ?”  
“Yes. I think so. She should have told me.”  
He kissed Claire’s forehead, the sisters had never fought but he knew that Lilith loved her man more than was healthy. A mutual thing that made them both dangerous and somehow adorable but never a danger to anyone but themselves. He guiltily thought of the nights that he had shared her and Claire with Brian and wondered if it could happen again, hardly what he should be thinking about at this moment.  
“She should have but it wouldn’t have made a difference.”  
“Do you think he is ok ?”  
Zacky paused, trying to think of anything over the last few weeks that would cause him to think that there was a problem. It was difficult but he knew that the recklessness had increased and the odd quiet moments when his friend would disappear had also seemed on the rise. Brian was a complicated man at the best of times but this made sense of some things and that scared the hell out of him.  
“I think so, bound to be some effects but if you’re worried talk to them both.”  
“I will, let’s go to bed.”  
Claire climbed the stairs, Zacky kicking over the embers of the fire before following. Dawn was nearly fully in place but sleep was the overriding concern and neither of them noticed that the door to the kitchen was open. Syn had listened to the conversation, amused and unconcerned but noting the unconscious desire in the other man’s voice. Maybe it was time, if Zacky would join them then Claire would follow.   
He twirled the fresh apple in his hand before taking a bite and wandering back up the stairs to the roof garden to find his woman. Let the others sleep, let them try to find him and stop the fun game he was playing with the street women. In the end they would all join him and take the city in a different direction. An interesting thought, the blood was needed to finally accomplish the next stage of the plan and make his takeover complete. A fallen soul would reign and Syn would be at his right hand.


	12. Evening and Fog

Zacky mused that it had been somewhat of an uncomfortable day.  
The silence over breakfast had only been broken when Matt politely enquired if there was a problem only to be bluntly asked why he hadn’t mentioned a small matter such as resurrecting his best friend. Brian had of course got an inconvenient fit of the giggles which had left to Bridget leaving and Matt trailing behind frantically trying to explain. Alice had awkwardly asked if Brian had known much about it, the scientist in her setting Johnny off which ended in Brian getting pissed at being grilled. He still didn’t want to think about that, the only memory remained a cold darkness and something that whispered within it.  
Claire had been mentioning in his head that Lilith had watched it all in amused silence while she had done her best to be the peacemaker and had telepathically talked Matt and Bridget into coming home. It had ended with the boys going to look around the murder sites while the girls handled Lilith’s contact at the morgue. All of them had a strong stomach but the photos that they had been given were graphic in the extreme. Zacky had worked hard to show no emotion at seeing the first victim, none of them knew that he had done that apart from Lilith.  
Matt shrugged and glanced over them again. It had taken the best part of the day to collate everything and more legwork would be needed in the morning to start gathering evidence from the witnesses and his contacts on the ground. It was complicated but he had no doubt that this killer was local and that they could solve the case.  
“The only thing that does stick out is that the killer is aiming to remove specific organs.”  
“Like a shopping list.”  
Johnny grinned, fascinated and grateful that Alice appeared to bear him no ill will for lying. She had stamped on Brian’s foot pretty hard when the punch at his head made his brain sting and it made him a lot happier with the situation. Brian had patted him afterwards, the teasing never that bad tempered and now all of them were deep into discussing the case.  
Zacky pointed to the murder sites.  
“Radius of operations suggests a local although he could have transport.”  
Lilith looked up from wrapping some netting around a small figure. None of them had liked to ask who this particular voodoo doll might represent but some luckless fucker was in for a rough ride. Brian had always meant to ask where she had picked voodoo up but decided against it after watching a summoning spell that involved a knife and a live chicken.  
“You’re assuming it’s a man. Can we be that sure ?”  
“He’s going after whores.”  
Claire smiled from her position in Zacky’s arms.  
“Could be a midwife, can be bad for business to get knocked up.”  
Matt nodded thoughtfully, making a note before looking up at the others and his watch.  
“I’m taking Bridget out on the town, any takers to join us ?”  
Johnny and Alice nodded enthusiastically as Brian winked at Zacky. He had found it hard to keep his eyes from his friend’s full lips and pale skin all evening and now had a plan to get both his woman and his boy in his bed by nightfall.  
“Love to but I have a wager riding on a fight tonight and I need Zacky’s expert opinion on the odds.”  
Claire smiled at Lilith, knowing from her hopeful expression that her friend wanted her to go with them. While it would be fun Old Peg’s words still haunted her and Claire had found a book which might aid her in finding out what was going on in the house. Hopefully all would be well and she felt a thrill of excitement at the look Brian was casting in her direction. It was hard to deny the man when he wanted some fun.  
“I’m in. Claire ?”  
“Getting a migraine so I will pass but you guys have a good time.”  
They all made to leave, the fight for the bathroom starting as Lilith packed up her doll and pins into her dress pocket and wrapped Claire in her arms. It was a warm, soft hug and Claire nuzzled her sister’s neck, fingers running through her hair. Lilith kissed her forehead and smiled.  
“Take ginger tea for that head and use the peppermint oil. Those boys are both horny as hell and I think we’re in for one hell of a night.”  
Claire giggled, no doubt judging by the thoughts running through Zacky’s head.  
“I will, is everything ok ? With Brian I mean.”  
“Never better. Still has the odd nightmare but I think he will get over them.”  
The man himself reappeared, one hand running through his hair as he adjusted his tie. The black suit was perfect, the tie knotted with precision and his hair just brushing his collar. A demon in an angel’s face was all Lilith could think of and her smile was a little triumphant.  
“Look at me, perfection.”  
“Won’t be by the time I’m finished with you.”  
Claire shook her head and kissed Zack, watching the three of them disappearing into the night. He heard her wish to be careful in his head as they walked down into the darker parts of town. He had already admonished Brian for this new hobby of prize fighting, Johnny had been more keen to make money, also using his pal’s beatings as a new and interesting photography model and even Matt had boxed a bout. So far Zacky had hung back but he wanted to give it a try tonight, the thought of some violence was somehow just what he needed.  
The underground club had grown bigger since Brian had taken down the big Russian who remained in a coma. The fat promoter, Riley, was making more money than ever before on his unbeaten champion and his friends, men from all over London wanted to try their luck and the fact that Lilith was often in residence added to the draw. He stared as Brian came in, his hand tucked in hers, the vibrant red satin of her dress set off his dark suit. Another man in a lighter suit and bow tie followed behind, this one sensual and calm, no doubt he could fight too although Riley had not seen anyone match his prize fighter yet. Something cold went up his back and he shook his head unused to feeling intimidated as Brian came up to him.  
“Who have you got for me tonight ?”  
“Him.”  
Riley pointed at an oversize tough from the docks causing Lilith to smile. The man tried not to notice that she was wrapped somewhat seductively around the newcomer and that her lover seemed not to mind. She was definitely an unusual woman and he had never quite decided if she was Brian’s wife or his whore. If he was honest with himself, Riley was too scared to ask. Brian gestured at Zacky.  
“My friend here wants a match and believe me, he could take that bitch. Find me another.”  
Zacky chuckled, nothing like Brian dropping him in it to make the evening more fun. They both handed Lilith their jackets as the place began to fill up and the hard business of betting began in earnest. Brian quietly talked tactics with Zacky, one hand resting lightly on his friend’s ass as Lilith again took out the doll and patiently set to work. The other women stared enviously at the red silk dress, her hair braided up and under an extravagant veiled hat.  
Fighters took the stage and quickly fell, both of the boys enjoying the sound of knuckles and bone connecting and the growing excitement of the crowd. Zacky loved the atmosphere, feeding from it as he rated his chances. There had never been a problem in any bar fight he had, he knew his height and looks tended to fool people but he had been fighting since he was fifteen and rarely lost. With Brian in his corner that was unlikely to change. Lilith came up to them both as his bout was called, kissing her husband deeply before turning her gaze on him. He held her close; knowing he would share both women by the end of the night. Her eyes shone with bloodlust and Lilith badly wanted him to use her, hurt her, all of it.  
“Kill the bitch Zack, make him bleed for me.”  
The smile he gave them both made Brian take a breath, the dark flashing across his eyes as the demon in him woke up. Zacky in just the simple vest, his muscles highlighted in the ink that flowed across his skin was erotic enough, the smirk on his face now as he faced the opponent more so. She had told him that Zacky had killed for him, an innocent soul and not the depraved one that even Matt had chosen. All of his friends had danced close to the demon, it was now just a case of bringing them home and Syn roared to the surface, he would have Zacky by his side no matter what.  
The opponent seemed less impressed, he had not been among the fights long enough to know that the gamblers knew better than to pick the obvious victor. Brian had taught them that and the odds were riding in Zacky’s favour as the fight began. It was a match of speed versus strength, the big man landing one or two punches to Zacky’s three and tiring quickly. Syn laughed as a particularly hard strike broke the big man’s nose, his friend pausing to lick the blood from his fingers as the man staggered around. He locked eyes with his lover for the briefest second and the knowing smile was enough to make the taller man hard, the growl in his throat lost in the roar of the crowd.  
The crowd crowed louder as Zacky put an end to the man by knocking four teeth out and breaking several ribs with his boots for good measure. He felt different, stronger and more in control as the promoter raised his arm in victory, receiving the applause and Lilith in his arms with equal delight. She ran her fingers through his hair and winked, biting her lip slightly as Brian ruffled his hair in passing.  
“My turn.”  
“I don’t know, you’re slower than me old man.”  
Zacky grinned at the look of mock horror and profanity that came from Brian’s direction, content to sit next to Lilith and mop the blood from a few open cuts with the handkerchief she gave him, eventually allowing her to take over and enjoying the tender way she cleaned his skin. They had found another giant for Brian to fight but his friend seemed unconcerned, bowing to the crowd and lapping up the applause. Such a fucking show off. He made a point of sitting Lilith on his lap just to piss his friend off more, her giggles telling both men that she knew exactly what game was being played here. Zacky liked how his hands fitted around her body and the soft smell of her when he kissed her neck.  
“Three rounds Zack and keep your cock to yourself.”  
There was a round of ribald cheers from the crowd at the taunt Brian directed at his friends. Zacky returned it with a comment about only for now which distracted the opponent long enough for Brian to land a brutal punch to the side of his head. It was a more even contest but there was never any doubt about which way it would go. The victor took his time to the delight of the punters, destroying the man in just under three rounds which amused both of his friends. Always the show off.  
“We should do this again.”  
Zacky took a long swig of whiskey from the bottle he had won and enjoyed the feeling of Brian’s arms snaking around his waist. The promoter stared for a moment, even more unsure now of who these people actually were. The cavern had emptied quickly, the charm that Lilith used had seen them all rushing for home but her friend had been too busy enjoying the moment to notice. He could feel Claire laughing at him in his head and telling him to hurry home. Brian seemed impatient too, hungry kisses running down his neck as they walked up the stairs and out into London’s habitual fog and rain. Their footsteps echoed along the pavement, Lilith quickly lifting the fur lined velvet hood of her coat over her hat.  
“We will, nothing like a little blood to get you fired up. I’ve missed this, missed us.”  
Brian nipped at the soft flesh and was rewarded with a moan, he knew Lilith was close by and ready but he wanted to see if Zacky was ready to do this voluntarily. It had been far too long since he had claimed the boy and now he wanted his girl too. Claire would be harder to persuade, maybe even dangerous but he would let Lilith handle that and if necessary even that could be done by force. He loved Claire, she was pliant and submissive when he took her and he knew that Zacky loved to share her in that way as much as he loved watching Zacky fuck his Lilith.  
“We got busy Bri, that’s all.”  
Zacky found himself turned around, surprised by the tears in Brian’s eyes.  
“You saved me, Lilith told me everything. I can’t repay you for that.”  
“I did what I had to do. What you would do for me.”  
Brian looked away, the pain in his voice almost too much for Zacky to take.  
“An innocent life to save me from something so dark and cold.”  
He pulled the taller man close, wrapping his arms around him and wondering if this was what Claire had been worried about. That Brian really hadn’t dealt with the emotional pain of leaving one life but being pulled back from the next. His lover looked so young, almost damaged and that was nearly as bad as holding him as his life had slipped away. It had haunted Zacky, the fear in Brian’s eyes as his breathing had slowed and finally stopped.  
“You’re here. That’s all that matters.”  
There was an unintelligible word from his friend and they simply stood together for a moment, enjoying the closeness before Brian’s arms tightened around him and a soft whisper made Zacky frown in bewilderment.  
“Did you like it ?”  
“What ?”  
Brian’s grip tightened further, the lyrical voice close to his ear.  
“Those pictures, looked like you enjoyed it. That blade does such pretty work.”  
Zacky yanked himself back, Claire’s warning now ringing in his ears and his heart going cold at the blank black eyed stare from his friend. Brian was now something else, he could see that she had been right and tried to call out to her but it was so foggy in his head. An internal battle raged as he fought between his logical human side and this strange calling to be with Brian. A slow smile crossed his face, the tension leaving him as he remembered the surprise on the face of the woman he had killed and the feeling of warm blood leaking over his skin. How the blade had sunk so deep into her body, how she had writhed and choked.  
“I-it was…good, she struggled. She didn’t want to die.”  
Syn smiled, oh how good his woman was and how wonderful it was to see that there had really been little push needed. It was how he had imagined it, his boy embracing what he truly was and could be.  
“They never do but why should we care ? They’re just cattle Zacky, we are better than that. You and me, together like we always should be. We can make it right, make it so they are ours for the taking.”  
Zacky was pale, confusion showing on his face as his mind fought the powerful spell. Part of him recognised that it was as much the darkness in his own soul, his need for Brian that made him willing to do this.  
“They are ?”  
“Yes. We are going to be gods. With Matt and Johnny and the girls. We just have to finish the ritual and find one more whore. Just one. Then it’s done.”  
Zacky shook his head, obviously Brian was right. He stared up into his friends chocolate eyes and warm smile, the feeling of everything coming together was so obvious and he wondered why he hadn’t seen it before. They were tidying up the streets, putting things right. He looked down and saw the singing blade back in his left hand where it belonged and a cherub’s smile lit up his face as it whispered to him that he was master of it now, that it loved him and would kill for him. Together they walked round the park to the small bench where Lilith was waiting with a hug for them both and the promise of pleasure of a different kind when they got home. The tiny effigy of Zacky, enriched with his blood and sweat rested in her pocket, her hand caressing it as they went further into the cold night air and headed for home.


	13. Jimmy

Claire stretched, feeling every ache and delicious twinge in her body. The sound of rain against the window was the only intrusion of the outside world and she was too warm and comfortable to want to move any further, not even to open her eyes. The only other sound was Zacky’s heartbeat, her head resting comfortably against his chest, his head resting against hers. He was warm, the covers thrown back from them both and now pooled on the floor.  
Brian was cuddled against her shoulder, his arm flung around them both in a clear mark of ownership and Claire knew that if she half opened her eyes she would see Lilith nestled into Zacky’s other arm. Some people might not have understood, she knew that this four way relationship was not exactly normal but there were no three people in the world that she loved more. In fact the only people she loved were under this roof. Claire had come to consider Johnny and Matt as her brothers, forged through terrible trials and years of hard work.  
Now she worried about them, pleased that both had found love and purpose but scared that the worst of their trials was yet to come. Fear for Zacky was the worst of it all, the spell Claire had cast the night before needed a few more hours but she was already convinced that something had happened to Brian in those three days he was gone. The tremor of doubt was there, his warm lips and loving arms were no different but Claire could not shake the feeling and knew better than ignore it. Lilith had closed her out and she wondered now how much her sister really knew.  
Zacky murmured something in his sleep and Claire shifted slightly, opening her eyes so she could look at him a little better. He had come home jubilant but sporting a black eye and puffy lips from fighting. She had kissed along the rapidly forming bruises on his ribs and bathed his hands before being interrupted. Both he and Brian had been a little drunk and very insistent, giving neither woman the chance to refuse or start a conversation. Not that they had minded, it had been far too long and they enjoyed sharing each other as much as the men. What time they had come in and what time it was now eluded her, all that had mattered was skin on skin and the feeling of hands on her body that could have been any one of the three people she now shared the bed with.  
Claire traced her fingers along Brian’s arm, there was no sign of the terrible wounds, the marks of knives and fire that had marred his body when they had found him. She could still hear Johnny sobbing, the screams as Matt held Lilith away from where Zacky cradled Brian on the floor of that warehouse and she wondered if it would haunt her till her dying day. What they had done after had been done in grief and fury, for the first time she allowed herself to wonder if it had been the right thing.  
Immediately the guilt hit, Lilith looked so fragile now and worse then and it hurt Claire to even imagine going through that and seeing Zacky lying dead somewhere with the ability to change it within her reach. The knowledge she shared with her sister, the craft they had trained in since they were children had given them options with all the dangers and responsibility that brought. They had used it, simple as that and never thought about the consequences. Now she was scared that there would be a terrible price to pay.  
There was a tapping on the door that at first Claire was not sure that she heard, it would have been easy to ignore it but whispered words and a slightly louder knocking made her realise that someone was indeed trying to get her attention. With some wriggling she managed to duck under Brian’s arm, moving Zacky’s head onto his in a mimic of her former pose and smiling as they both shifted comfortably into it. Both herself and Lilith had teased and questioned the boys until they had admitted becoming lovers as teenagers and it was still extremely cute. They had never wanted to interfere with this bond and now Claire knew that it had been strengthened even further.  
Pausing only to wrap herself in a silken dressing gown Claire opened the door a crack and smiled a little in surprise. The smile died at the frozen, scared expression on Johnny’s face. He couldn’t seem to speak, pulling her out the room and up the stairs to the attic level before he could finally find some words. Claire could feel the cold in the house and thought immediately of the spell she had used, whatever it was could have arrived in answer.  
“Matt woke me, apparently Bridget let him in as he said we were expecting him. She and Alice have been chatting to him for nearly an hour and they didn’t know. Jesus, what else are we going to have to expect?”  
“Stop and tell me what’s wrong.”  
He did stop, turning to her with real fear on his face and scaring her in the process. Johnny didn’t get scared, he was always excited about the risks whether it be them conjuring up something new to help them locate someone or dreaming up a new exploding thing. He had never baulked at any of it, not even turning an eye to them attempting to bring Brian back and now he looked terrified.  
“Jimmy is here. He’s drinking tea in the garden with the girls like he hasn’t been dead for three years. Is this what you expected ? We bring one back and get the other too ?”  
Claire caught her breath. It wasn’t possible, Jimmy had been the missing piece in their friendship since he had disappeared during an investigation that involved some particularly nasty Russian gangsters. They had never found a body but Claire and Lilith had both felt him around and knew that he had passed over. It had ripped the heart out of them all, none of them really recovering from it and it had magnified the fury and pain when it had happened again. Her head spun and whirled as she tried to make sense of this and fathom any connection to Lilith and Brian.  
“How…?”  
Johnny shrugged, turning back and taking the steps two at a time. Claire followed, wincing at the bright sunlight as she skidded to a halt beside her brother. Matt was standing next to the door, his face frozen and unseeing as all three of them stared at the tall man in the dark suit half hidden by the foliage of Johnny’s cultivated lemon trees. Laughter rose in the air as Bridget and Alice listened to an amusing tale of teenage Matt and a stolen bottle of vodka.  
Matt still couldn’t stop staring. It was like time had been turned back three years and he couldn’t cope with it. It was Jimmy, the blue eyes sparkling as his hands waved and described their past as if they had all just woken up from some kind of nightmare before they moved onto the new murder that had been discovered that very morning. If it wasn’t that he was talking to girls that had never known him Matt could almost believe they had gone back in time. He looked so young, so untouched by time, his height somehow never making him gangly and the same spiked up hair that had always caused the others to tease him. Jimmy Sullivan, back from the dead.  
“The spell.”  
Claire’s voice was hushed, causing both men to look at her. They were long used to the girls casting but never had something like this been an accidental consequence.  
“What spell ?”  
“I cast last night to see if there was a spirit or demon in the house. This was not what I expected.”  
Matt rolled his eyes, a smile touching his lips.  
“You don’t say.”  
“Aren’t you guys even going to say hi ?”  
Matt blinked, following Claire and Johnny as they headed into the circle to look closer, to see if it really was Jimmy. There was no doubt, he was here and the feeling of peace that rushed over all of them felt like the sun had indeed risen for the first time in weeks. Johnny reached out, touching the newcomer’s shoulder before pulling his hand back with a grin.  
“He’s cold.”  
There was a look of infinite sadness that flowed over their friends face, both Bridget and Alice still trying to work out what was going on. It was clearly not as clear cut as an old friend visiting which was what this man had said when he had knocked the door. There had been no doubt about letting him in, just felt like he belonged there and now they wondered what the hell was going on.  
“I’m dead idiot, of course I’m cold.”  
Bridget squeaked and pushed the chair back as the other girl continued to now openly stare. Matt squeezed his girl’s hand and pulled her a little closer, Johnny doing likewise as Jimmy fixed his smile on Claire. There was something different in his smile now, an almost unbearable sadness that made her feel cold all over again.  
“I was nearby because I was supposed to be collecting Brian. It was his time and you all chose fit to interfere. Now we have a little problem don’t we ?”  
Claire nodded slowly, her heart dropping at the confirmation of her fear. Matt saw the glance and looked questioningly at his old friend. Jimmy didn’t take his eyes of Claire and there was a moment of hush broken only by birdsong.  
“It’s not a criticism. I know why you did it and the fact that he could come back wrong was hidden from you. Lilith isn’t even to blame for that, she loves him too much to let him go.”  
“Come back…..wrong ?”  
Johnny’s voice was quiet and broken, both he and Matt had taken it for granted that Brian was just himself and that the whole thing was over and forgotten about. Neither man liked the look of guilt that flashed across Claire’s face or the overwhelming fear that gripped them both.  
“He was supposed to die, I know you don’t want to hear it. We had a good life on this plane and he should have moved on with me. By pulling him back you also pulled back a part of him that had become demon and it has control now.”  
Matt shook his head, his voice now angry.  
“He’s fine Jimmy, he is just as he has always been. You can’t tell me that we have to lose him again on top of losing you…”  
A sob broke free and instantly Jimmy was on his feet, wrapping both his friends in his arms and holding them as fresh tears spilled down Claire’s cheeks. The other girls sat together, their hands joined as they tried to take all this in. The dead it seemed were never very far away, the pragmatic scientist finally ready to believe and the trainee witch beginning to understand the forces that had been meddled with.  
“It has got serious now. I can’t say I can save Lilith, it has gone too far but I may be able to help you save Zacky.”  
Claire blinked as the words sunk in, Jimmy letting go of his friends to come and kneel beside her taking both her hands in his. Matt looked furious and she knew that she would have to tell him about the visit to Old Peg and her suspicions. That Zacky was now in danger gave the whole thing a new emphasis. She found herself staring into his deep blue eyes as Jimmy half smiled.  
“You know what you have to do.”


	14. Truth

Lilith was alone when she woke.  
That was to be expected, her boys had work to do and no doubt the others would be up and about to do the normal daily chores and routine. Claire would be with Bridget going over the talismans of their world, Matt watchfully nearby with paperwork and subtle dominance. Johnny would be in his lab, Alice helping him with cogs, wheels and metal until the latest fantastic device was ready. Only she was alone, letting the cool wind from the window waft against the long stinging scratches down her back and the half dreamlike state of her mind. They had been rough and she was sore, her lip a little fat from slaps and hard kissing. Claire had been soft and comforting as always and she had enjoyed tasting the honey between her legs.  
The charm had hardly been needed, Zacky couldn’t deny the darkness in himself when presented with what Syn had promised him. Now all that remained was to bring the others around, let them see that it had never been as black and white as people pretended as the world moved in swathes of grey and red. Matt was too intelligent and worldly to not realise that he could have it all and never have to bow down to his parents or the world again, this new girl of his would follow him anywhere. Johnny would want to stay with his friends, content to follow them into hell and damnation if it meant Brian would smile at him. Would love be enough to draw Alice in ? Only time would tell.  
Which left her sweet sister.  
Claire would want to be with Zacky, there were no doubts there but she had always been more careful over the magic, a little more inclined to practise only the white and find a clearer path. True she had helped Lilith with bringing her boy home but that was more out of love for him and herself than anything more. She had been reluctant, understanding what they were doing more than the others and Lilith knew that it bothered Claire more than she would ever let on. To take the full step into the dark would be harder but Lilith was determined that she should come with them, there could be no leaving her behind.  
With a sigh Lilith decided that getting up was probably necessary and washed and dressed in white, her feet bare before heading downstairs to the kitchen to make coffee. The house was quiet and it was nearly one in the afternoon. She had expected to hear the others moving around and was puzzled by the silence, maybe they had all headed out on various errands leaving her with some relaxation time. The thought made her smile and Lilith headed back up to the top and the peace of the roof garden. All was quiet and she stepped barefoot through the door with a smile only to be startled by the sound of it slamming behind her.  
“What have you done Lilith ?”  
“Done ? Nothing ?”  
Lilith gasped as Matt literally picked her up by her hair, his expression full of rage. Johnny was behind him, one of the larger rifles aimed at her head as they forced her into a chair in the centre of the garden. Matt nodded towards Claire and Bridget, keeping a tight hold on his friend as they stepped forward. Lilith couldn’t understand the powerful grip on her arms as she stared imploringly at her sister.  
“Do it.”  
The witch and the trainee began the binding spell, Lilith still surprised that they had the guts to actually try it. She stopped struggling and sat patiently waiting for them to be done, her hands tucked in her lap until Matt pulled both her wrists behind the chair and firmly handcuffed her to it with an apologetic smile.  
“Let’s try this again. What happened to Brian? We know he didn’t come back right.”  
“Nothing happened to Brian, he’s fine. What is this about and why the hell did you do a binding spell on me ?”  
Claire looked at her, noticing that Lilith wouldn’t meet her eyes. Anger was starting to well up, the thought that Lilith would let Zacky be hurt was making a red mist cloud her mind and it filled her voice with a dangerous venom.  
“Old Peg said she told you there was a chance he would come back wrong and Jimmy said he was supposed to die, he came back with a demon in him.”  
Her voice cracked at the end and Lilith could feel them all staring at her. She shook her hair out from her face and looked at Claire.  
“Jimmy’s dead, I don’t understand.”  
Johnny stepped forward, the whole situation puzzled him beyond words and he didn’t want to think about what else might be happening and where his friends were. When Jimmy had left them they had gone looking for Brian and Zacky only to find them gone. They had decided to prepare the binding spell and then question Lilith before going after them.  
“Jimmy was here. We all saw him. The truth Lilith, we need the truth now.”  
She half smiled and Matt felt his heart drop to the ground.  
“He came back better. He is everything he was supposed to be but he’s still the same Brian, our Brian… Just with an added few extras.”  
There was silence as it all sunk in before Claire slapped Lilith hard across the face. She was furious, finding it hard to believe even now that her sister would lie about something so serious and keep this information hidden from them. Still Lilith did not react, licking her lip slightly and wondering just how far this would go. That something else dead had returned now piqued her interest and she fought to keep her voice level.  
“C’mon Claire, you knew that was dark magic, you all knew that we killed someone to bring him back to us. Wasn’t so black and white then was it?”  
Matt and Johnny looked away, aware that they were now being stared at by their women with fresh horror. That one detail hung in the air as Lilith regarded them all with a larger smile now. Claire was still furious and not about to let her get the upper hand.  
“What about Zacky? Where did they go?”  
“I honestly don’t know. They were pretty drunk last night, probably just gone out for some air.”  
Matt sat down heavily, fixing Lilith with a hard stare. He had always trusted her but now he wondered if somewhere along the line they had lost her or if this darkness had always been there and he had just chosen not to see it.  
“Bullshit. You and Brian did something to him and you’re going to tell us where they are so we can go stop it.”  
“I haven’t harmed a hair on his head I swear it. Neither has Brian.”  
Claire went in for another slap only to find Johnny had grabbed her arm and pulled her over to the other side of the garden, his arms wrapping around her as she continued to tremble. She let him hold her, knowing that is was better if Matt handled this rather than letting her anger get the better of her.  
“That isn’t Brian though is it ? Do you know what it’s capable of ?”  
“It is Brian.”  
Lilith’s face set in a sullen pout, in truth she didn’t know where he had taken Zacky to hunt, only that by now the ritual was probably complete. That this was going badly was probably down to her, she should have let the boys do the explanations, her man was better with words and Zacky even better than that. Matt pulled a pistol from his jacket and slowly loaded it in front of her face. She fixed him with a long stare.  
“So you’re going to shoot him ? Brian hasn’t hurt you or any of us since we got him back. Do you really think you can do it Matt or are you just going to shoot him in the back like a coward ?”  
Claire was a little more in control, leaving Alice to quietly talk to Johnny as she came back to Matt. Bridget stood at his other shoulder, the three of them presenting a united front as Lilith tried not meet her eyes. The standoff was tense, Claire’s voice pleading both verbally and in Lilith’s head which caused a shiver of pain.  
“Please Lilith, did you do some kind of magic on Zacky ?”  
Lilith looked up and for the first time they all saw the madness in her eyes. It shocked them, giving her the moment of distraction that they needed. With one single movement, she slipped the handcuffs and pushed back against the binding spell. Lilith had trained long and hard, knowing that her physical magic was only tempered by Claire’s unique talent with the mind. Now she managed to push them all, a huge bang and rush of air knocking the others of their feet. Fast as lightening she was up on the ledge of the building, her bare feet holding her just above the four storey drop as Claire realised with horror what she was holding in her hand.  
“I gave him what he wanted, I gave him back to Brian.”  
Matt tried to edge closer, the doll of Zacky now barely held within her grip as she held it over the drop. He was struggling to understand what had gone so badly wrong with one of his dearest friends without him even noticing. He barely recognised the pale girl, tears staining her cheeks as the wind started to rise on the roof. Lilith’s hair whipped around her face in dark waves, stark against the pure white of her dress. One false move and she would fall.  
“You just want to take him from me again. You don’t understand what we could all do together, how powerful we could be. Syn and I are going to be together one way or the other, you kill him and you kill us both.”  
“Please Lilith, please come down. This isn’t you. Don’t hurt Zack, maybe we can help Brian. There has to be some way of getting rid of the demon.”  
Matt reached out a hand as Claire continued to subconsciously try and place a holding spell around the building. If Lilith stepped off it would at least give them a chance to pull her back. Her eyes remained fixed on the little effigy, there was no telling what would happen to her man if Lilith dropped it. She had stayed away from the mix of Catholicism and mysticism that made up voodoo and now wondered if it was powerful enough to kill.  
Lilith couldn’t see through the tears, frustrated that they didn’t understand but seeing the love and compassion in Matt’s eyes. He had always been her friend, the one she ran to if there was a problem with Brian or if she had argued with Claire. He had held her more than once and just the sound of his voice seemed to bring a warmth back against the stinging in her eyes. For a moment she considered falling into his arms before she remembered Syn and stepped off.  
Bridget screamed, both Johnny and Matt diving for the edge as Claire sent out the spell. It seemed as if Lilith hung in the air for a second, kept mobile on a rush of air and salt before Matt managed to get an arm around her waist. He pulled back, his friend adding his weight to bring them both crashing onto the rooftop. Deciding that any further hesitation would be a risk, Matt hit Lilith hard, knocking her out cold.  
“Take the damn thing and destroy it. We need to find them and get that old witch woman of yours here, see if she can help us sort this shit out.”  
Matt gingerly handed the doll to Claire who motioned to Bridget to follow her down into the attic. Old Peg may be able to help but she could break the spell on Zacky herself and maybe that would help them find him. Alice checked on Lilith, her pulse was strong but she was unconscious and likely to stay that way, her face swelling from the blow. She considered following her friends before realising that she was probably more use to Matt and Johnny.  
“What about Lilith ?”  
The scientist gently stroked Lilith’s cheek, pushing her hair from her face as Matt picked her up in his arms. He pondered for a moment, one thing Lilith had been right about was that he would not be able to shoot Brian but neither could this continue on with his friends being taken out one by one.  
“We tie her down as best we can and get Claire to use a stronger binding spell. Then we go find Zacky and Brian. We need to end this.”


	15. Consequences

Old Peg didn’t look surprised as Claire slammed the door closed behind herself, Matt and Johnny. Neither man had been to the shop before but clung onto the hope that Claire could stop this in a way that wouldn’t require them to hurt either of the missing men. The old woman looked dismayed at the drawn horror on Claire’s face and hurried them to sit, bringing piles of musty volumes down and passing them to Claire to flick through. Both the men didn’t like the bottles and assortment of hanging creatures around the old woman.  
“You know about this?”  
The crone smiled, looking at Johnny with a wink before passing him a book too.  
“The ripples created by your friends are hard to miss. I am also unsure that there is a way to pull them out now that they have set themselves so firmly on this path. It may be that you unknowingly bring more trouble down on your heads.”  
Claire nodded bleakly, the idea that had sprung into her head at Jimmy’s words had all the potential to backfire dramatically but it was also the only way she had heard of to draw out a powerful demonic entity from a living being. Whether Brian was actually alive was another question but if she could save Zacky and maybe save Lilith from herself it had to be worth a try. She shut out the thoughts of mourning her Brian a second time.  
“What exactly happened to Brian?”  
Matt sat down next to Peg and accepted a book from her, curious to understand more.  
“Drawing a soul back from death required the blackest of magics. An innocent soul had to be traded for it and a very powerful weapon would be required. One that you can try and get rid of but they tend to resurface. Even then there is a high chance that the soul will be tainted split in some way. Brian and now…..Syn. Was your friend a good man ?”  
“He wasn’t a killer, he lived hard but his heart was good.”  
Peg smiled sadly.  
“Then you may still have the smallest of chances.”  
There was a long pause, all of them hunting through the book for the exorcism ritual that Claire needed. A very old spell that many thought lost through the burning times but still to be found in the oldest tomes passed down through generations of witches. While they worked Peg cast a location spell, Claire had told her that she could no longer hear or speak to Zacky in her head and they would need more conventional magic. Matt suddenly looked up, something in the old woman’s words had suddenly lit something in his memory.  
“Hang on, you said an innocent soul?”  
“Yes.”  
Matt closed the book and stared at Claire.  
“Zacky told me he took that heart from one of the killers on our list. That man was most definitely not innocent. Then remember when he was convinced he had killed the Ripper’s second victim with that knife?”  
Claire shook her head, a cold shiver running up and down her spine at his words. Surely Zacky wouldn’t have lied but she also knew he would have done anything to get Brian back. Johnny was working it out, the pattern becoming clear to him as he looked at his friends.  
“So Zacky killed the first woman to get Brian back, the knife was in his head because it was used to kill the subsequent women?”  
“But why and we threw it in the river remember. So that means that there could be a link to Brian and Lilith and these murders.”  
Claire felt sick, Johnny starting to pace as Matt put the final piece together. His mind was reeling but he knew that they needed to check in on Aberline as well as going after the two men. The night seemed to draw in, dusk falling outside as it seemed to get dark in his heart. That Brian and Zack could become killers, that Lilith could watch and not stop it.  
“There was another last night. If it is them then there must be a reason.”  
Old Peg pointed to the circle and runes drawn on the floor, the dust rising in tiny tornados as light sparkled around her. There was a gentle hum of power surrounding the whole shop, tremors along the bookcases making things rattle and fall. Claire knew that something more than just a location spell was happening and she hoped that Peg could help them with what was to come.   
“We need to find them, any luck with that spell ?”  
Claire picked up the final volume and got a shock running along her arm and up her spine. This was the one, she could almost feel Jimmy at her shoulder and let a glimmer of hope run through her mind. Thumbing through the pages, it came to fall at the exorcism spell. Its words were painted into the pages in blood, the words a warning in themselves.  
“Got it. Can you see them Peg ?”  
The old woman cursed under her breath and muttered faster, trying to fight the cloaking that was being used to keep her from seeing where the men might be. She carried on working, Claire moving around her to gather things from the shelves and hand them to Johnny to pack into the bags on the counter top. Matt had left to find a paper stand, the night streets would still have vendors and he wanted to know the location and circumstance of the last murder in a bid to understand if there was a connection or if he was grasping at straws.  
The papers were full of it, calling it the worst yet and the work of a madman, Matt hoped it wasn’t plural, the thought of losing one of his friends still pained him and the idea of two was unthinkable. He scanned the details, lurid certainly but he couldn’t be sure of what was real and what was sensational reporting. Still it mentioned the removal of organs and that was bad enough. He considered going to the address, wondering if Aberline would still be there and if he could get more details but it was doubtful if his friends would have lingered and so he tucked the paper under his arm and headed back.  
“We are nearly ready.”  
Johnny passed Matt a heavy bag, picking up a second as Claire and Old Peg continued to chant over the mystic circle. Both men were thinking of their lovers, now left behind at the house to watch over Lilith. They had found some heavy duty chain to keep their friend restrained and Johnny had drugged her with chloroform just to be safe. Now Alice and Bridget both carried guns and had been given strict instruction not to open the door.  
“There’s still that thing. Are you going to destroy it ?”  
Matt was pointing at the Zacky doll, still lying on the counter. Claire picked it up, carrying it across the room to a large metal cauldron that bubbled with a mixture of holy water, incense and oils. She pictured Zacky in her head, all the best memories of their love and all her hopes for their future together. His laughing green eyes and smile, always a little blush as if he hated being the centre of attention. She could feel his arms around her, the promises of love that they had shared still made her believe that her lover was still there and would come back to her.  
There was a flash and sizzle as she dropped the doll into the water, the bonds and rope around it dissolving and coming free to leave the thing itself floating gently. Claire couldn’t know yet whether it had worked but she could feel a lighter presence of mind in herself and prayed that whatever Lilith had done had been undone.  
“He may find his way home or find us. Anything yet Peg ?”  
The crone nodded, sweeping harder at the circle as the light began to swirl and move again. Whatever was working against them was gaining in power and now she doubted that Brian alone could be doing this whatever had come back with him. It spoke of powerful old magic and she wanted badly to warn the young people but she knew that this had to play out now. Too much had been set in motion and she said a prayer for their souls as the light burned brighter and settled into one spot.  
“St Michaels Church, near Bethnal Green. They are there now and not moving.”  
“Lets go.”  
Claire kissed the old woman, all of them hugging her as they collected the final things and made to the door. It was somehow fitting that it should be a church, of all places surely it would give them an edge but Claire reminded them that ancient magic had nothing to do with Christianity and its god and satan. This would just be a building, something inside may be what Brian and Zacky were looking for or using. If they could surprise them and use the spells to seal them in long enough to attempt an exorcism it would have to do.  
“We go back to the house and get the girls. Lilith could be useful in getting Brian to see sense. Whatever is in him still loves her.”  
Johnny could see the logic but hated the tight anger in Matt’s voice. Claire took once glance back and smiled at Peg before closing the door behind them and heading out into the street. They moved quickly, somehow sensing that time would be important. The streets blurred into one before Claire felt a sharp pain in her head and could hear a scream. She stopped, falling to her knees as the boys huddled around her and tried to understand what had happened. Claire managed to painfully raise her head to look at Matt, both Johnny and he bending down to lift her gently to her feet and support her as Claire tried to breath.  
“We have to get home.”  
Old Peg cleared everything away. She felt old and reminded herself that maybe five centuries was long enough to live. Her sisters had burned, both of them dying after hiding her with a pagan family. They had died so that Peg could live and been reborn into the two witches she now tried to protect. This had been coming a long time and she mentally prepared herself before turning around to face the man who had appeared through the back door of the shop as the others were leaving. She hoped to stall him, to keep him from his task but knew that her magic was not as strong as his. He had the power of the old gods and now all that was left was to stand and be counted.  
“I have been expecting you.”


	16. A Fall Into Violence

Bridget and Alice had been pacing the house for nearly an hour since the other three had left for the magic shop. It had been a surreal hour, both of them tortured by the revelation that the men they loved had been involved in a killing that had now resulted in the unleashing of something from a world that until a few weeks before they had not known existed. Claire had known they were shell shocked and had tried to explain that demons existed outside of the biblical connotations, they were worried because they did not know what Brian had got mixed up with during the three days he was gone.  
“So he could be harmless?”  
Claire shrugged, glancing at Matt and Johnny.  
“The signs are not given the dead women and what’s happened with Lilith.”  
They had all looked at the sleeping woman now chained by her wrists and ankles to Matt’s bed. Lilith was drugged and they had tried the binding spell again, only then were the men happy to leave the girls to watch over her while they were away. Strict instructions had been given, let no-one in and don’t untie Lilith no matter what.   
Alice sat down heavily on the end of the bed and looked at her friend.  
“Do you love him enough to stay after this?”  
There was a pause, both women had thought of nothing else.  
“Yes. I have to believe he did this for the right reason. They all seem distraught that it’s gone so wrong.”  
Alice nodded, Johnny had almost plead with her not to walk away, trying to explain that after losing Jimmy in the way they had none of them could lose another friend. He had been as shocked as the others that Lilith had hidden things from them that might have changed that decision but equally adamant that they would have still tried. She was trying to process it but knew that he was her life now and she would stay with him however this turned out.  
Bridget had no doubts, Matt had the opposite reaction. He had not wanted her to be in danger and had wanted her to go to his office at least until this was over and then he would find her something else if she could not be with him. He felt guilt, this was not the life he had wanted to offer Bridget and his dreams of a home and family now seemed distant to him. Matt knew that he would either be forced to kill his friend to release him or kill him to stop Brian taking more lives. There might be a small hope that Claire and her wise woman would give up another option but he wasn’t betting on it and the last thing he wanted was to drag Bridget even further into this whole mess.  
“Then we have to try and help surely.”  
Bridget smiled, wondering what insane plan the brunette was about to come up with. There were enough weapons littered all over the house to make some trouble but without knowing where their friends were it was a moot point. She flexed her fingers and thought about the wakening talents that she had been practising. There had to be a way to help.  
“We can try a locating spell, see if we can track Zacky down.”  
“Let’s do it.”  
Alice felt a little rush of hope, she hated being stuck on guard duty although she didn’t really want to think about what would happen if Lilith woke up. They shut the door firmly behind them and climbed the stairs quickly to the attic room. Bridget had got used to the gloom, avoiding the shelves with the more potent items and instead collecting up the basics for a location spell. Alice noted that things had been moved and scattered since their last visit and wondered what or who had done that.  
“Who are you looking for ?”  
The soft deep voice startled both women, a glass jar dropping from the shelf as Alice whirled around and Bridget stepped back. It shattered loudly, the unidentified contents slithering across the floor and causing Zacky to wrinkle his nose. They stared at him for a moment, uncertain how to take his reappearance before he smiled, the bruises from his prize fight still showing against the pale skin.  
“I was looking for Claire, something happened out there. One minute I was here with her and Brian and Lilith and next minute I’m coming to downtown. Are they all out or what?”  
Bridget felt a wave of relief and returned his smile.  
“Something went wrong, they are all out looking for you guys. That ritual you did brought him back wrong, with a demon in him.”  
“Shit, really?”  
Zacky looked alarmed and even more concerned when they explained about the doll and Lilith seeming to know that his lover was not right. Bridget stopped short of asking him if it was actually true that he had killed someone to perform the ritual but she noted that Alice kept her hand on the gun at her waist. Zacky didn’t seem to notice, pacing a little as he tried to put all the pieces into place.  
“Where’s Lilith now?”  
“Matt’s room. Handcuffed and knocked out with chloroform. Claire tried the binding spell again but I’m not sure it worked.”  
Zacky half smiled again and turned, leaving them to trail after him as he walked down the stairs to Matt’s room. He had nodded when the Irish girl had explained about Claire heading to the magic shop to try and locate where Brian was and what he might do next. Zacky had offered little comment, saying that it would probably be a good idea to follow them as he badly needed to find his boy too and see if exorcism was even a possibility.  
“Then what do we do with Lilith?”  
Zacky didn’t answer, sitting on the bed and putting two fingers to Lilith’s neck to check for a pulse. He liked the chains that snaked around her wrists and the way the white dress showed of the curve of her breast. Desire flared in him and Bridget wondered if he was still suffering the ill effects of whatever she had done to him. He looked so pale and his green eyes seemed to flash in the sunlight coming in from outside. Nasty bruises still marred his skin and she was about ask him if he was alright when his hand flashed out, smartly slapping Lilith on both cheeks.  
“Wake up bitch, we gotta talk and time is limited.”  
Alice blinked, unsure where the sudden violence had come from. Fear crawled up her neck, she had never known Zacky to show the slightest hint of violence to any of the women and the tone in his voice was cruel, even more so than what they had seen in Lilith.  
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”  
“Zack, don’t !”  
The trainee felt a cold shudder go up her back, calling out to Claire with her mind. Something was wrong here and she knew that neither of them were experienced enough to deal with the situation if things went bad. She held her breath as Lilith started to stir, her eyes opening but unfocused. Zacky smiled and patted her cheek. She really did look so adorable all bruised up and out of it.  
“That’s better. A voodoo doll? Really?”  
Lilith groaned, trying to sit up and fast realising that she was chained down pretty tightly. Her head throbbed and she couldn’t get a fix on exactly what had happened, only that Zacky was now sitting on the end of the bed and the two girls with him were looking really worried. She sighed and rattled the handcuffs.  
“You needed a prod. Where’s Brian exactly?”  
“Around I expect but the question is now more what the fuck is going on? I killed once for you Lilith but I told you never again.”  
Lilith smiled, Bridget and Alice looking surprised at the admission. There had been no answer in Bridget’s head from Claire and the air seemed to be growing heavier and more oppressive by the second. It was a tense stand off, Zacky clearly prepared to hurt Lilith to get answers and the other two powerless to stop him or even sure if they should.  
“The killing is done now, I dare say Syn handled the last of it.”  
“He did but damn, I still had fun.”  
Alice screamed, drawing the gun at the sight of the wicked looking blade in Zacky’s hand. They had both seen the drawing that Matt had done of the thing and remembered it being cast into the river on the day they had all first met. Yet here it was, comfortable in his hand as Lilith turned her attention toward them.  
“Thought you might.”  
Bridget tried to reach the door, the gun pulled from Alice’s hand by a simple flick of Lilith’s wrist. The chains merely fell away, metal not a match to an amused witch who wanted to go find her friends and explain everything. It was a little annoying that they had all got the wrong end of the stick but to be expected when Brian just couldn’t resist exercising his chaotic side. She let Bridget get halfway down the stairs before pulling away the rug with her mind and causing the girl to tumble the last few steps. Zacky reached over, helping Lilith up and planting a long kiss against her lips before also helping Alice to her feet.  
The man in the elegant suit followed, his arm tightly in Alice’s as the protesting girl tried to pull away and reach her friend. Lilith followed, still groggy and not sure where the others were until Zacky explained. Brian was sitting in the living room, enjoying a sandwich and not too bothered by the screaming and threats to send him back to hell. He smiled at his lovers and noted that Zack was enjoying holding the girls a little too much.  
“They really have taken this all the wrong way then.”  
“Seem to. Still, we can explain once we all get to the church and finish the ritual. I expect they will have sussed that part out.”  
Alice pulled Bridget to her feet, the door was obviously locked but if they would get past the others and to the back then they may have a chance. Bridget was feeling a little braver, staggering over to where the three were now discussing whether it was too early for vodka.  
“You won’t get away with…whatever you’re trying to get away with.”  
An amused smile crossed Brian’s face, it was hard to see any demon in such an angelic face. Zacky planted the cursed knife into the coffee table and looked at his friend, somehow wondering how he would explain it. Lilith had wandered behind him, her fingers working into the curls against his neck.  
“It’s just a business deal and a new job is all. We can have money, power, anything we want in fact. Just means a slight shift in realms and a change in moral thinking.”  
Bridget shook her head, the other girl now seeing that Lilith was watching her intently. Any move and there was no telling what would happen to her. Matt’s face flashed across her memory and she prayed to the goddess that she would see him again.  
“Evil in other words.”  
“Good and evil are relative are they not ? Plenty of evil going on in the world without my input.”  
Brian smiled again, he really couldn’t see what the big deal was and he was certain that once Matt and Johnny saw what was on offer they would come over to his way of thinking. Claire could be persuaded too when she fully understood.  
Bridget nodded slowly.  
“I see that.”  
“So relax and come with us. We will go meet up with the others and I can explain properly.”  
Alice was puzzled as the other girl nodded and moved forward towards the others. For a moment she considered that maybe this was the right thing to do, a vague hope that it could all be sorted out reasonably and safely flitted across her mind before Bridget suddenly lunged forward, pulling the cursed knife right out of the table and launching herself at Brian.  
It all happened so quickly, there was no real thought behind it but Bridget felt the connection of the blade into flesh and bone, a quick flash of triumph running through her mind before she realised what had happened.  
“Shit, Syn ?”  
Bridget shook her head, staring unbelieving at the knife buried in Lilith’s back as she slumped forward into Brian’s arms. Why she hadn’t used magic or merely shoved the tall girl sideways she didn’t know but the terrible primeval scream that broke from Brian caused her to scramble back on the floor as Zacky restrained Alice with an arm around her neck. His blank black eyes fixed on her as all of them watched the life drain from the woman in his arms.  
“Oh god, I didn’t mean….Lilith ? Please….”  
Syn snarled, his hands cradling Lilith as he stared at her. He couldn’t understand this, hadn’t even had the chance to react and now all he could feel was the pulse in Lilith’s neck slowing and the awful amount of blood collecting in his hands. The demon was loose, overriding everything as he flung Bridget into the wall with a single blow. Gently laying Lilith onto the sofa he stood and walked over to the now sobbing girl, looking down with rage flowing from every pore.  
“What the hell have you done ?”


End file.
